In Another World With A Silver Sword
by Itch-HeSay
Summary: Notarin Dokusha is your average high school student. Life is going well for him: He gets decent grades, his friends always enjoy his company, and he has a beautiful girlfriend. This all gets turned upside down when Notarin is suddenly sucked into a portal that spits him out into a world unknown to him. A world where he seemingly becomes a Witcher. More chapters soon.
1. Chapter 1

It's been a long while since I've been able to look at myself in the mirror. I knew something felt strange about my eyes, but now I can clearly see the difference when I look at myself. The eyes of a cat: That's what I have. It was only several hours ago when I met my girlfriend at the café on the way home from a long day at high school. If things were going according to normal, I would be playing some Final Fantasy 14 at home with friends right now. However, fate had something different in mind for me.

After I left the café with my wonderful, beautiful girlfriend named Hikuminmai Asaho, we were having a pleasant conversation as we were about to cross the street. However, things would suddenly take a turn for the worse: A car was rampaging down the street, hurling itself towards my beloved Asaho. I couldn't let such a wonderful girlfriend as mine die here, like this. I lunged and shoved her out of the way, fully expecting death in my efforts to save her. Death did not come. Instead, I felt a hole form under me in that instant. It felt as if a portal was sucking and swallowing me into another world, and now I believe that is actually what happened.

Shortly after, I found myself lying face first in a field of grass. My mind felt different, and it wasn't just the impact from hitting the ground after the portal spat me out. It was almost as if I knew a whole language that was supposed to be foreign to my Japanese mind. I stumbled about for a bit, but I finally came across what looked to be like a farm. As I approached the farm, I noticed a few interesting details. Nothing about this farm looked modern. It was almost as if it were from the middle ages or something. Maybe it was Amish, but as far as I know, there are no Amish people living in Japan. Anyhow, I decided it would be best to knock on the door of the farmhouse to see if anyone was home. To my surprise, I got a response, but the response isn't what I would exactly call "friendly".

"What is it? Do I know you? My god, you're a freak of nature! Speak up or I'll grab my pitchfork you ploughin' mutant!" I was surprised to understand the words coming out of this man's mouth. Is this the language they call Polish? "S-ss-ssorry sir. I don't know what you mean by "mutant". To tell you the truth I'm a bit lost and I have no clue where I am. Could you help me a bit?" The man wasn't very cooperative. "How in the bloody hell could you have no idea where you are?! This farm of mine is very fucking close to Novigrad! How could you not know that? Don't tell me that you don't even know that Novigrad is Nilfgaard Territory now!" I didn't know how to tell the man that I was definitely not from this world at this point. "Sorry, I don't even know what Nilfgaard is! I just want a bit of help, please!" The man looked at me in disbelief for a few seconds, but after an awkward moment of silence, he opened his mouth again. "Look kid, I haven't a clue why you don't seem to know a bloody thing about anything. I mean, you look to be a god damn Witcher, so you should know a thing or two about the world right now. Tell ye what, if you slay the drowners by the river down there, I'll let you stay the night and I'll tell you what you need to know about. Keep your hands off my daughter though!" Slaying monsters sounded scary, but I knew I had a new power in me that wasn't in me before. I couldn't refuse the man's offer. "Alright, I will slay these monsters, so you better keep your word!" The man let out a sigh. "An honest peasant like me will always keep my word."

I travelled in the direction the man pointed me towards, and eventually I found myself by the river where these so called "drowners" were supposed to be. It wasn't long until I saw some humanoid figures approach me with intent to attack. "These must be the drowners", I thought to myself. "Killing these shouldn't be different to all those video games I played back at home. Wait, why do I even have a sword on me to kill these things? This makes no sense! Well, no time for complaining now." The sword that should've felt heavy was a perfect fit for my hand. I had no trouble wielding it. Time slowed down for me as I saw each drowner approach me. It was the moment of truth. It only took one slash to cleave each drowner in half. It was almost as if I was born to do this. I had to prove to the man that I had done the deed asked of me, so begrudgingly, I cut off the disgusting head of one of the drowners and brought it with me.

As I approached the farmhouse once more, the sun began to set. The man gladly accepted my proof and let me into his home. As I entered this primitive but cozy space, I spotted a pretty girl in the corner of the room with a surprised look on her face. She opened her mouth and said, "Papa, who in the world is this? I would never expect you to let a Witcher into our home!" "Not to worry darling, he seems harmless and he doesn't even know a thing about the area! I've just agreed to help him for the night and make sure he knows how to get around, ain't that right Witcher?" I nodded in response. "So Witcher, I'll tell you the nitty gritty. Novigrad used to be a free city within the country that was once known as Redania. However, King Radovid of Redania was assassinated, so the city, as well as the kingdom of Redania fell to empire of Nilfgaard. Things have been tough, but we've been getting by. There might be some work for you in Novigrad though, so I suggest you head out in the morning. Here's some coin for the drowners you took care of". "Thanks! I shouldn't take this, but I need it!" I grabbed the pouch of coin he was holding out to me with excitement. "There's no need to thank me Witcher, this is your job. Anyways, we have a spare room here, so make yourself at home!"

I decided it was best to collect my thoughts and relax for the night. The candles in my room were lit, emitting a warm light that put me at ease. The man should've gone to bed by now, but somehow I heard a quiet knock at my door. I got off my bed and opened my door to see a sight for sore eyes. It was the man's pretty daughter in her sleepwear of all things! "Hello Witcher, you look like a nice chap, and I'd thought I'd keep you company for a while and make you feel more comfortable". I hesitated for a second, but I couldn't refuse her. We sat on the bed for a while, having nice conversations until she said something a bit weird. "Witcher, is it true that you are sterile? Do you ever get urges?" My face lit up with a bright red color. "U-uu-uhh, what urges? Of course I get urges, I'm a normal boy!" The girl looked at me with a slight grin. "To tell you the truth Witcher, as soon as you walked in that door, I wanted to try things with you. Let's do it." "What about your dad? Won't he notice? And by the way I have a girlfriend!" "Shhh…. Don't worry Witcher, just let me take care of you". At that moment she pulled down my pants and the rest is history.

After the affair, the girl left my room and I decided it was time to take a good look at myself in the mirror by my bed. I've definitely changed since going through that portal. Cat's eyes, huh? I guess this might be what make me this "Witcher" they've been calling me. What a day. Time I got some rest. My name is Notarin Dokusha and this marks the beginning of my life as a Witcher.


	2. Chapter 2

I opened my eyes to see the warm glow of the morning sun illuminating the field outside my window. Did that farm girl really do it with me last night? I can't believe I have betrayed my beloved Asaho-chan. It wasn't long until I heard a loud banging at my door. "Hey mutant! You better get up before I kick you out! Wouldn't want to miss breakfast, wouldn't ye?" The man was so kind to offer me breakfast. To be honest, I never expected this kind of hospitality from him. I put my clothes back on and grabbed the silver sword by the side of my bed. I was excited to eat a nice breakfast, but I couldn't stay here long.

The farmer and his daughter sat down with me to eat. We engaged in some light conversation as his daughter constantly looked at me with a slight smile and flushed cheeks. It wasn't long until the farmer caught on. "Mutant, why is my daughter giving you looks like that? What did you do to her?" I blushed as I rapidly thought of a way to respond to him. "S-ssir! I did nothing with her I swear!" The man frowned a bit at me and gave me a sharp look. "You better head out to Novigrad soon before me daughter falls in love with ye. Would be a shame if she ended up with a freak of nature like you. You wouldn't even be able to provide a child if it's true that Witchers are sterile!" I awkwardly got up from my chair and thanked the man. "Thanks for letting me stay! I will be on my way now! Don't worry about your daughter!" The man shut the door behind me as I walked out, and I was on my own once again.

The hospitality that farmer provided me was really nice, but did he have to act so racist towards me just because I'm a so-called Witcher? Is that what they call Asian people in this world? However, he was kind enough to point me in the direction of Novigrad, so I shouldn't be complaining to much. It wasn't too long until I saw a skyline of medieval looking buildings in the distance. What I was seeing must be Novigrad. Without hesitation I picked up my speed and went straight to there.

I found myself at bridge where the entrance to the city was. The guards standing at the gate gave me a suspicious look, but they let me through without speaking a word. As soon as I stepped inside this city, I knew for sure that the world I was in was not my own. People were cruising the streets with horses, blacksmiths were selling their sharpest blades, and beggars lined the streets asking for any coin to be spared. This whole setting was just a bit overwhelming for my modern senses. I didn't have much time to gather my thoughts though; I heard a loud voice near me seemingly looking for my attention. I turned to look at the origin of the sound to see three men staring me down with intent. "Hey mutant! This town is no place for non-humans, go back where you came from or you might have to face the might of our steel!" I was taken aback by the display of their aggression towards me. "Ss-ssorry, I would head back where I came from, but I don't know how to…" "Are you picking a fight with us? You'll surely regret it." In that instant, the men took the blades out of their sheaths and started running at me. I had no time to lose. I took out my silver blade as fast as I could, and before I knew it, their corpses were at my feet. I could hear screaming form around me, but I could see someone remain completely calm throughout the crowd. I could see them clapping as they started to approach me.

"Hello there! I don't believe I have seen your face around here before! Are you a Witcher? I happen to know a very talented one myself. My name is Dandelion. Perhaps you would like to come into my tavern for a bit and maybe we can discuss a few things". The man looked friendly enough, although I was surprised to see that he was not shocked by what he has seen. "Thanks Dandelion! I'll gladly accept your offer. My name is Notarin Dokusha". I followed the elegantly dressed man into his tavern. It was quite the setting and it looked like a very comfortable place to have a drink. If my girlfriend was here I would definitely consider spending some quality time with her here.

Dandelion offered me a seat at one of the well set tables in the Tavern. Delicious food was set down for us to eat while we talked. "I can't blame you for killing those awful men Notarin, but why did you use a silver blade on them? I thought Witchers only used them on monsters." I took a big bite out of the chicken on my plate before I responded. "I guess you could consider those men monsters. Men that racist don't deserve to be called human in my opinion. Anyways, everyone is calling me a Witcher, but I honestly have no clue what they're talking about". Dandelion looked very puzzled by what I just said. "You've got the skills and the eyes, but you're telling me that you don't know a thing about Witchers?" I nodded my head "no" in response. "Huh, if you really don't know a thing, I have a friend you should consider talking to. His name is Geralt of Rivia, but you'll need to go all the way to Kaer Morhen to see him. He's currently on a 'vacation' of sorts with his lover Yennefer and his adopted daughter Cirilla. However, I have an acquaintance that will be able to transport you there with a portal. Her name's Triss Merigold. She's in town for the time being. Let me take you to her after you're done eating". I nodded in agreement and we continued talking about lighter subjects as I finished my meal.

As Dandelion guided me to see Triss Merigold, I got to see a fair amount of Novigrad. The whole city felt like a city I would see in an RPG or something. However, it wasn't too long until Dandelion and I had reached our destination. When I caught a glimpse of Triss, she looked absolutely beautiful. She had gorgeous red hair and a pretty face anyone could love. "Hello Triss! This is a new friend I found today. I believe he is a Witcher, but the boy doesn't seem to sure of that himself. He's looking for your help to get to Kaer Morhen so he can meet Geralt". Triss looked a bit surprised, and then frowned. "Dandelion, I told you to not bring up Geralt if you could. I almost had him, but he just had to regain his memories and that whore Yennefer took him". Triss let out a big sigh until Dandelion responded. "I understand Triss, but this is an important matter, and the boy you see here is not Geralt, so could you do it for the sake of this boy?" Triss paused for a moment, but eventually she answered. "Fine, so be it. This boy looks like a finer piece of Witcher meat than Geralt anyways. Hey boy, maybe you could repay me later on for helping you. No rush, just be sure to ask what you can do for me the next time we meet", she said in a seductive tone. "Thanks so much, I will be sure to learn lots of things about being a Witcher while I'm gone!", I said as Triss opened a portal to Kaer Morhen. It was time for me to go through yet another one of these things, but at least this time I had an idea of where it lead to.

As I exited the portal, I was greeted by a beautiful landscape completed by tall mountains and a large, gorgeous castle. That castle had to be Kaer Morhen, no doubt. I took no hesitation in heading towards it, making my way to the gates by the entrance. It seemed completely open, as if there were no security or something, so I decided to head on inside. I reached the courtyard of this castle yet I saw no one around. I decided it was a good idea to shout and see if anyone was home. "Hi there! Anyone home? My name is Notarin Dokusha and I'm looking for a man named Geralt of Rivia! I was told he could teach me a thing or two about being a Witcher!" I waited in the courtyard for a minute until I saw a man with long, white, flowing hair approach me. "I'm the Geralt of Rivia you requested. Do I know you? You look like a Witcher, yet you have no medallion. What school do you come from?" "What school? I don't have a clue either. To be honest, I don't think I'm from this world, but everyone has been calling me a Witcher, and I've come here to learn more about Witchers and to see if I am really one". Geralt paused for a few seconds with a puzzled look on his face. "Huh, this is most interesting. Tell you what, let's have a mock duel with wooden swords. That will be the best way to see if there's a Witcher in you". I was hesitant to challenge a professional to a mock duel, but considering that I cut down some monsters already, I accepted the offer to the duel.

We fought in the same courtyard we just talked in. Geralt looked at me with intent. He was serious about this and wasn't going to go easy on me just because I was a new face. We traded some blows with our wooden swords, but it wasn't long until I had my wooden blade up to his neck. "You won this one kid. I'm quite surprised honestly. It seems you really do have a Witcher in you. Come, we have much to discuss inside". I followed the noble looking man through the courtyard, pondering my surprise victory. Where did I obtain these skills? I never thought myself to be a fighter, but this is a new world, and perhaps a new me. Maybe I really am a Witcher now after all.


	3. Chapter 3

I followed Geralt through the courtyard and eventually I found myself within the interior of Kaer Morhen. In all honesty, the place looked like it had seen better days, but that was quite apparent from outside as well. At the very least, this looked like a cozy place to stay for an aging castle. "You said your name was Notarin, right?" I nodded in response to Geralt's question. "Such a strange name, never heard anything like it. Anyways, I want to introduce you to a couple of people since you'll be staying here for a while". "I believe Dandelion told me about them before I got here, I'm looking forward to meeting them, Geralt!" Geralt let out a slight smile and then opened his mouth again. "So you met Dandelion, eh? Did he write a ballad about you yet? He's quite the character. Anyways, we just gotta go up these stairs and you'll be able to meet Yennefer and Ciri". As we ascended the steps, I could hear a voice calling to Geralt. "Geralt! Who in the world are you talking to? Ciri's up here with me, and we should be the only ones here right now!" Geralt let out a slight sigh before responding. "Sorry Yen, we have a surprise guest! He thinks, or at least guesses he's a Witcher! He said that Triss teleported him here and that he needs to learn a few things from me!" After Geralt finished responding, we finally found ourselves at the top of the stairs.

We entered a big, beautiful bedroom where two women were sitting on the bed. One was a beautiful, mature looking lady with raven black hair, and the other was an ashen haired one with a giant scar, but still very much a lovely sight for the eyes. "My my, this one is quite the handsome one, isn't he?", the woman with raven hair said in a suggestive tone. "Notarin, this is Yennefer. You can say we've had a "long" history together". Geralt pointed towards the raven haired woman as he said this. "This one is practically my daughter. Her name is Cirilla, but we all just call her Ciri". Geralt then pointed towards the ashen haired woman. "Looks like he could handle himself quite well in a duel. Would it be a problem if I challenged him?", Ciri asked with enthusiasm. "Well, you see, this guy just bested me in a mock duel out in the courtyard, so he's got quite the skills. It's up to him. Notarin?" "You seem like a nice person Ciri, so I'll accept your challenge. I'm excited to test my skills further!" Ciri hopped off the bed and we went down the stairs to prepare for our duel.

The sun was pouring down on us as we entered our battle stances. "Are you ready Notarin? Are you sure your victory against Geralt was not just a fluke?" "I'm ready as I'll ever be, Ciri! We'll just have to see if I have the skills in me!" After a second we both went rushing at each other and our wooden swords clashed. We kept trading blows for a while until we started panting. Ciri brought herself to speak in the middle of all this. "Wow… you're quite skilled! I never… would've guessed… you would've… been a challenge! Also, I must say: you're quite handsome for a Witcher now that I can see you up close!" I blushed for a moment and I almost got caught off guard by what she said, but I came back to my senses quickly. "Not going to fall for that trick, Ciri!" I slashed my wooden sword with added aggression. "H-hh-huh? What trick?" Ciri blushed as I kept striking. She couldn't come to her senses quick enough and she tumbled to the ground. "I admit defeat, Notarin! You are quite good with a blade, but that doesn't mean you can handle yourself in a serious battle!" Ciri blushed even more as she struggled to find an excuse. "I enjoyed my duel with you, Ciri! You put up a really good fight! I think we could be good friends!" "If I'm being honest, it's been a while since I've seen friends, let's talk a bit after dinner, ok?" I responded to Ciri with a "yes" and then we headed back into the castle.

It was dinner time and all of us inside Kaer Morhen were seated at the table inside the very spacious hall. "So, the duel went well?", Geralt asked. "It went well for me, I hope Ciri enjoyed it though even if she lost!" "I did enjoy it, Notarin, was the most exhilarating duel I've experienced in a long while". Geralt had a surprised look on his face. "Wow, you beat Ciri? I think you're already ready for some Witcher work. I'll have to teach you how to use signs and how to brew potions, but you'll definitely be ready for a contract by the time we leave here". I nodded and opened my mouth. "Yes, Ciri put up quite a good fight though, I think we're going to have a good chat together after if that's alright". "Oh, has Ciri taken a liking to you then? I'm ok with you two being together, but if you ever hurt her, you will feel a true Witcher's wrath". I blushed and nodded horizontally. "N-nno! It's not like that! Please understand!", I insisted. Ciri had her head down and was clearly blushing as well. "Yeah, that's what they all say", Geralt replied.

Dinner ended and I met with Ciri inside her bedroom, then I told her about my adventures so far. We found we had some things in common and eventually the conversation reached an awkward place. "Hey Notarin, about what Geralt said earlier… I'm kind of thinking about that seriously". I paused for a brief moment just to take in what Ciri just said, but I had to respond. "You do know I have a girlfriend right? I don't think we can work out together". Ciri sighed and gave a rebuttal. "Notarin, it's very unlikely you'll ever see her again from what you're telling me. Why not just enjoy what you have right now? Tell you what, if you ever get to make it back to your world, I'll forget I ever met you, ok?" I sat for a minute thinking about what I should say to her, but I eventually came to the conclusion that she was right. "You know what? You're right. Let's try this together, and since we're in bed already, we might as well… you know?" Both our cheeks were completely flushed. "Yyy-yyes, Notarin, let's get uu-undressed and get this over with, ok?" That night, I'll admit… I had the most satisfying sex of my life.


	4. Chapter 4

Morning came. Ciri was still asleep beside me, and I came to a realization. All that had transpired these past couple of days marked my rebirth as a Witcher, and my new relationship with Ciri made me sure of that. No longer was I the Notarin that I used to be; this is a new Notarin, complete with new skills and knowledge. I love Asaho, but the Notarin she loves is long gone now, probably never to return. I've come to grips with the fact that I might never see my world ever again, but at the very least I desire to know why I've been called to this world. There has to be a reason why I'm here or some sort of purpose I have to fulfill. However, I need to learn how to hone my skills as a Witcher first to be able to embark on my own quest.

Ciri opened her eyes and glanced at me. "Usually I'm up earlier than this, but I never get to experience such a nice man as you by my side in the morning. I thought I'd savor the moment. However, Geralt may be wondering where you are, so this situation might turn awkward soon". I realized that Geralt never showed me to my room last night, so he definitely would be curious of my whereabouts. I could hear someone pacing towards the door of Ciri's bedroom, and I had a good idea of who it was. The door creaked open as a voice was heard. "Hey Ciri, have you seen Notari-…" Geralt was now standing in the doorway and blushed in embarrassment as soon as he saw Ciri and I laying together in the same bed. "Haha, I thought you said there was nothing between you and Ciri, Notarin! You are certainly a bad liar. I already knew from last night's dinner that something like this might happen!" Ciri curled up to ease the embarrassment she felt from her adoptive father seeing this scene. "Geralt! Can you please leave us alone for a bit! We'll be down for breakfast soon!" Geralt stuttered for a second but was able to respond. "Ss-ssorry Ciri. I'm outta here right now!" Geralt slammed the door behind him, and I could hear quick pacing towards the stairs. "I think that's the cue for us to get out of bed, Notarin". "Yes, we better head down for breakfast now".

When breakfast came, we all sat together in awkward silence, that is until Yennefer was curious to know why things were so silent. "Why are you all so quiet? Were you so talkative during dinner last night that you ran out of topics to talk about? Or are my suspicions correct and there is something going on here that I don't know about?" We continued to sit in silence for a moment until Geralt awkwardly let out a sound as if he were clearing his throat. "I think Ciri and Notarin have some interesting news to share with us. Yen, you wouldn't believe where I found them this morning!" Yennefer looked at Geralt with curiosity but Ciri was quick to interrupt. "Geralt! Don't you dare!" Geralt grinned and clearly enjoyed embarrassing his daughter. "'Don't you dare' what? There's no point in keeping this a secret, unless it was only a one-time thing. But I think we all know that's most likely not the case". Yennefer also clearly enjoyed how awkward this situation was for both me and Ciri. Yennefer just had to know more. "Hmmm, this is all quite mysterious and scandalous sounding. Since Ciri seems unwilling to say a thing, I would be curious to know what Notarin has to say about all this. He's been quiet this whole time. I wonder... why is that?" Yennefer finished her sentence with a devilish grin, her eyes glaring at me, as if this were an interrogation or something. "U-uu—uhhhh…. What can I say? Ciri and I… well…" I could see that Ciri realized that this could no longer be kept a secret. She interrupted my sentence to finish it for me, so she could feel as if she at least had an illusion of control over the situation. "We slept together! OK? We slept together and now we love each other! Any problem with that?" Yennefer giggled at Ciri's defensive response. "Haha, there isn't a problem whatsoever, but it's much too fun to tease you".

Geralt had decided that it was about time to switch topics and bring a more casual and less awkward atmosphere to the table. "So Notarin, are you ready to learn a little about signs today? These will be essential to learn since they can really help you if you're in a pinch. A Witcher's got to utilize all tools available to them". "Yes, I very much look forward to learning what these 'signs' are all about. They sound quite interesting!", I responded. "Good. After breakfast I'll take you outside to the courtyard again so we can get some good training in". After going over the basics of what we would be covering today, Geralt and Yennefer seemed quite interested to hear about the world I came from. "So, you mentioned that your world lacks magic, but has instead focused in major advancements in technology?", Geralt asked. "Yes. The world I come from is very different from yours. People use vehicles called 'cars' to get around and they're considerably faster than horses, yet more dangerous. Another technology we have that is quite hard to describe in relation to your world is something called a 'phone'. They are basically glowing, interactive bricks we carry around that gives us access to a vast array of knowledge that most libraries would be jealous of at the touch of our fingertips". Geralt looked quite puzzled by what he heard. "This all seems quite difficult to believe, but I've heard of weirder worlds that Ciri has visited before, so it can't be too far-fetched". I became puzzled by what Geralt just said. "Wait, Ciri. You've travelled to different worlds and made your way back to this one? Does that mean I'll be able to see my world again?" Ciri looked frustrated but responded. "Yes, I've seen other worlds, but it's not as simple as it may seem… It would be hard to explain". "Ok Ciri, I believe you. I've already accepted that I've started a completely new life here. Anyways, I'm keen to do some training now if you don't mind Geralt!" Geralt was quick to respond. "For sure Notarin! today I'm going to teach you the basics of the Igni sign and see what we can achieve from there". Geralt and I then headed out to the courtyard where I would begin to understand the basics of signs.

An hour had passed, and it seemed I had already mastered the Igni sign. "Wow Notarin! You are a quick learner! It seems you have a large amount of magical power and talent in you! It's almost as if you were born to do this!" I put on a large smile as Geralt praised my progress. "Thanks, Geralt! I never would've learned any of this without you! Although it does seem to come to me more quickly than natural, I will admit". Next, Geralt showed me how Aard worked. It seemed quite fun to control my own gust of wind. I had a feeling I would be using this one a lot. Like Igni, it didn't take me that long until I had a good feel for it. "At this rate I can teach you about potions tomorrow and you'll be really ready for Witcher's work!" Geralt seemed quite surprised yet enthusiastic to see how well I was doing. "A lot of people would kill for your power, Notarin. You need to keep that in mind when I'm able to set you into the wild". "Yes, Geralt. I honestly never would've thought I had these talents in me!" By the end of the day, Geralt had taught me all the signs he wanted me to know. "Wow, kid. I think you were summoned here for a reason. I suspect your true talents awakened as soon as you were sent to this world. This is honestly the first time I've ever witnessed anything like this. Anyways, you should get back to Ciri for the night, I bet she's feeling lonely". I was truly happy to know that Geralt thought so highly of me. "Ok Geralt, I'll head back inside. I had a really good day today! I'm looking forward to learning all about potions tomorrow!" I headed back inside, but I couldn't help but notice the fact that Geralt looked concerned and lost in thought as I left. It didn't seem to abnormal of him to me though, so I kept making my way to Ciri. Today was definitely an awakening for me.


	5. Chapter 5

It was yet another new day in this new world. I woke up beside Ciri yet again; I was getting used to this. If I can learn to brew potions quickly, I'll be finally ready for some proper Witcher work very soon. Geralt and I headed straight for the courtyard again after eating breakfast. "Ok, Notarin. First things first. This might be a little scary, but we need to find out if your body has gone through the mutations necessary to handle Witcher potions. You already have the cat eyes, so that's a good sign. Although it's odd that your body would change completely when travelling to our world. Here, try this potion. We have Yennefer on hand in case things go wrong, but hopefully they shouldn't". I looked at the vial Geralt handed me with hesitation, but I had to do this to ensure I was in fact a Witcher. *Gulp!* I downed the vial in one go, and Geralt looked very concerned. "Hey, what you just did was very dangerous Notarin; that wasn't meant to be taken in one go!" I could feel the potion throughout my body. It hurt, but I could still stand. It wasn't long before I could speak normally. "I think… it worked. It worked, Geralt!" Geralt had a look of relief on his face. "I'm glad nothing has gone horribly wrong, especially after the stunt you pulled there, but we need to see if the effects of the potion work. What I gave you is called a Swallow potion. It should help you heal if you are cut or wounded." I understood what I needed to do when he told me about this potion. I took out my blade and pricked my finger on it. Blood came out, but not for long. I could see the small cut close up before my very own eyes, and soon my finger looked as if nothing had happened. "I didn't even need to ask you. Impressive, Notarin. It seems like the potion works. Now I'll teach you how to brew this potion".

Geralt and I practiced brewing potions for the next several hours. Like the signs, potions seemed to come to me naturally, almost as if I was born with this knowledge and it has been locked away for years. "You're extraordinary, Notarin. I mean that quite literally. No ordinary Witcher in training could master all these concepts this quickly. Are you sure you knew nothing about being a Witcher before this? I'm starting to question your story and why you came here". Geralt was addressing me in a much different tone than he was before. I needed to reassure him. "Everything I've said is the complete truth. I had no idea what a Witcher was before I talked to Dandelion a couple days ago. My life has been turned completely upside down and I'm not used to any of this". "Hmm… This truly is a fascinating case. I don't know where we would even start to begin searching to solve this mystery. My best guess is that this was a very unique case of summoning, but I have no idea why anyone would summon you here. However, you possess a high amount of magical potential it seems. I have no idea why you turned into a Witcher, but my guess is that your power, which couldn't be harnessed in your world, was brought here for a reason. That means we might need to leave Kaer Morhen earlier than expected". This was all a little much. Me, with high amounts of magical potential? I would have never guessed. "Why would we need to leave early, Geralt? It's nice and quiet here and we don't seem to be in danger". "Well, that's the thing. Ciri is of the elder blood, meaning that she has very strong magical abilities. We've had problems with that in the past, since some individuals were able to track her magical presence and follow her that way. I might fear things could be similar with you". I paused for a moment to think about what Geralt just said. "So, you're saying that someone summoned me so they could hunt me and harness my powers?" "Yes, Notarin. I'm afraid that might be a real possibility. Let's go inside and talk to the others about this.

It was dinner time and we were all gathered around the table to talk about what Geralt may have discovered. "So, you're saying that Notarin might be a source, like Ciri?", Yennefer inquired. "That really might be the case. Notarin has displayed that he is no ordinary individual, and I think he might've been summoned here for a reason". Yennefer had a concerned look on her face and responded to Geralt. "You'd think that after all this time with Ciri that people might think that hunting a source is not a good idea. Guess they want to take advantage of the fact that Notarin is green". "That's probably the case, but whoever did this isn't someone we should take lightly. They might put Ciri in danger as well", Geralt said in an urgent tone. "We should get going as soon as possible then", Ciri responded. "Yes Ciri, that's what we're all thinking. As much as I hate portals, we need to get out of here quick. Yen, could you please open one for us?", Geralt asked. "Yes, I can indeed do that, but where to?" Geralt thought about it for a second but came up with an answer quick. "No one is going to expect us in Vizima right now. Temeria was recently restored, so we won't have to worry about the emperor of Nilfgaard when we go there. Besides, I might have a few friends there that can help us out. That should buy us some time". Yennefer nodded and opened a portal for us to go through. Yet again I was headed through another portal to see land that I was unfamiliar with.

We found ourselves in a scenic, wooded area supposedly not too far away from Vizima. Once we reached a clearing, you'd have to be blind not to see the city of Vizima. "Ah, quite a few memories of this place", reminisced Geralt. "Ironic, since you went on a big trip here when you lost your memories that one time", Yennefer playfully replied. "Ha, wonder if I'll have to undo yet another Striga curse!" I did not know what Geralt was talking about, but clearly he had strong memories of this place. "Once we get into to town, we'll find an inn to stay, but we'll need some coin soon. Notarin, that's where you come in", Geralt instructed. "Yes?", I questioned. "I'm going to get in touch with some old friends and see if they can help us while you check the notices and see if there's any contracts. If there are any, it's your responsibility to take care of it ok? This will be good experience for you, Notarin". I nodded my head in agreement. We got into town and booked ourselves in an inn. Geralt and Yennefer would share a room, and well, Ciri and I would share a room of course. The place looked cheap but cozy, so I wouldn't have any problems sleeping here, especially since this was a medieval setting and discomfort was everywhere. However, I could waste no more time here right now, since I had to check if any contracts were around for the taking.

There was a notice board outside the inn with several papers on it. Taking a look at it showed that most of these notices were quite mundane, such as "LOST CAT", or "MIDNIGHT DISCOUNT AT THE EAGER THIGHS BROTHEL". I forgot that brothels would be a thing in this setting, so I laughed to myself as soon as I saw that notice. It took a bit of searching, but I finally came across a slip of paper that read "CONTRACT: WITCHER NEEDED. DROWNED DEAD SPOTTED ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF VIZIMA. ONCE COMPLETED, BRING PROOF TO THE GUARD'S CAMP. ANYONE WHO COMPLETES THIS TASK WILL BE REWARDED 300 ORENS". Drowned dead, huh? Were those "drowners" I fought a while back "drowned dead"? This contract should be easy for me then. I headed straight for the outskirts to complete my task.

It was clear to me why drowners were called "drowned dead" now. The last time I had fought them, it was near a river, and what is in the outskirts of Vizima? A river. These corpses of the drowned had turned into beasts I must slay in order to preserve the wellbeing of the townsfolk. I walked alongside the river to see if I could get a glimpse of any drowners. It seems they would get a glimpse of me before I got a glimpse of them. All of a sudden, I could hear a hiss behind me, only to find a humanoid moster running straight for me. I unsheathed my silver blade as fast as possible and cut the beast down immediately. However, this was far from over. I could see several of these beasts circle around me and I had to do something immediately or I was going to become meat for these monsters really quickly. I jumped out of the way, brushing past one of them in an effort to control my spacing around them. I cleaved the head clean off the drowner I had just brushed past. Now I could count how many were left. There were five more in total. Definitely a bigger challenge than last time. I waited for one of them to lunge at me before I attacked again. Now that one was in my range, it was easy to kill. I did this repeatedly with each one, isolating them and making them easy to kill. I broke a sweat, but the deed was done. My sword definitely needed a bit of cleaning after getting doused in Drowner blood, but now I could claim those orens I worked so hard for.

I started walking back towards the city until I heard a clapping noise form behind me. "Well done! Well done. I've been dying to meet you". The voice was unknown, and I turned around to see a plain-looking man dressed in a cloak. "Witchers are easy to spot since there are so little of you, so you must be him". I was getting worried. This could be who Geralt was referring to. "How did you know I was here?", I asked. "You just gave yourself away with that question, haha! To tell the truth, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. It was luck I stumbled upon you. There's many of us out there, you know, and the chances are high we'll find you". I was confused by what the man said. None of this made sense to me. "We call ourselves the Agents of the Undershroud. I'm so happy I could make your acquaintance. Now, come with me. I'll make sure you do".


	6. Chapter 6

"What makes me think I'll come with you?", I asked this so-called "agent of the Undershroud". "Oh, if you will not come willingly, I bet I can make you come by force. It shouldn't be hard. You've got skills, but you're clearly no longer at peak performance after fighting all those drowners". I didn't have any other choice. I readied my blade, not knowing what my opponent was capable of. "I should've guessed you wouldn't cooperate, but this will be a bit of fun! Although it won't last long", the agent mocked. I must say that the agent's taunt worked exactly as he had planned, as it angered me enough to make me dash right towards him. Quickly enough, I would realize that this was stupid on my part, as the man vanished in thin air right in front of me. Since I had no idea where this man was, I wasn't going to take any risks. I immediately used the sign of Yrden to ensure I had a trap ready in case the man decided to strike. "Arrrghhh!" I could hear the man yelling behind me. My trap had caught him at just the right moment. "I had no clue you would be able to use signs! You are progressing much faster than any of us would've anticipated!" The man struggled to break free, but without hesitation I thrust my blade into his chest. "Who are you and who are the Agents of the Undershroud? Why are you after me?", I inquired, as I held my blade in his chest. "You… You… will find out soon enough. I… I… I underestimated you. However, I am far from the most powerful member of my guild. Many more are on the hunt for you. You will learn nothing more from me, so just finish me you coward!" I looked the man in the eyes with an intense glare. "Fine, so be it". I swung my blade upwards, cutting through the man's flesh and killing him instantly. I had to collect my reward and head back to the inn as soon as possible.

What might have been just a few hours made the day feel very long for me, as when I returned to the inn, Geralt had not yet returned. I guess he was still busy with his errands. Ciri wasn't around to talk to either, so she must've left on important business. I decided to just head up to my room and get some rest for the time being. I got in bed and laid there thinking about today's events. I finally had a clue on who transported me to this realm. "Agents of the Undershroud, they some kind of cult or something?", I asked myself. I heard the slight creaking of my door. It appeared to be opening. "Ciri? Is that you?" "No, it's just Yennefer. Although do tell me more about these 'Agents' you speak of. I'm quite curious", Yennefer requested. "You heard me talking to myself? Were you spying on me or something?" Yennefer giggled and responded. "Well, no one else is around, so how could I resist spying on a Witcher as cute as you? I was almost hoping I'd get a little show back there. However, these 'Agents' you speak of might be a little concerning". I blushed and almost wanted to yell at Yennefer for what she did, but I held back my reaction. "Although I'm not exactly impressed by what you just did, I shall tell you about these 'Agents'".

Some time had passed after I explained to Yennefer what had happened to me while hunting drowners. "So, you learned nothing about these 'Agents of the Undershroud' other than the fact that they are looking for you?", Yennefer asked. "That's correct. I don't even know what they want me for, but I can imagine it's probably for something quite heinous". Yennefer sat there in thought for a moment until I heard my door opening. Oh no, it was Ciri, and she could see Yennefer and I sitting on the same bed. "What are you doing with my boyfriend in the same bed? Get out now! You want Geralt to know too?" Ciri appeared furious. Yennefer was quick to attempt to calm down Ciri. "It's all ok, Ciri. I haven't done anything naughty with your boyfriend here. We were just having a friendly chat. In fact, this will be something you'll want to hear in on as well". "I don't care Yennefer, just leave now please. I want some time alone with Notarin". Yennefer had a disappointed look on her face, but ultimately agreed to Ciri's demand. "Alright, I'll leave you two alone. I'll see you two at dinner then".

After Yennefer left, Ciri hopped on the bed and we laid beside each other. "You know, Yennefer was really telling the truth. We were just killing time, but ended up discussing important matters instead". Ciri sighed and responded. "Yes, I don't doubt you, but Yennefer's definition of 'killing time' means many things. I've seen her eyeing you before, and don't think that just because she has Geralt, she won't try anything on you". I felt a bit puzzled. "Why's that?", I asked. "Well, let's just say you may be the cutest boy I have ever seen in my lifetime. Women will go crazy for someone as rare as you. It's just a given". I blushed at Ciri's elaborate compliment. I don't think I've ever heard a woman praise me that way before. "Anyways, what's the important matters that you mentioned?", Ciri inquired. "While I was hunting drowners for a contract earlier, I had a run-in with a very curious individual. All he had to say that he was part of a guild know as the 'Agents of the Undershroud' and that they were after me. He attempted to take me by force, so I had no choice but to kill him". Ciri looked quite concerned. "These 'Agents of the Undershroud' don't sound familiar to me at all. I don't even think Geralt would know a thing about them. If only we knew more. Anyways, care to take your mind off the stress of the day, my dear?", Ciri asked in a flirtatious manner. "I wouldn't mind if I do". For the next hour Ciri and I "fooled around" in bed, so to speak.

Dinner came and Geralt had finally returned. "How was your day, Notarin? Were you able to complete a contract?" Yennefer interrupted before I had the chance to speak. "He definitely has a very interesting story to tell you, Geralt." Geralt raised his chin in curiosity. "So, Notarin. What happened?" "First of all, I did manage to complete a contract. That was the easy part. However, something of much greater interest occurred as I completed my contract. A man claiming to be a part of the 'Agents of the Undershroud' wanted to take me with him by force". Geralt looked very confused. "'Agents of the Undershroud'? I believe I have never heard of such an organization. Although this is a significant lead we should not ignore. I took some time tracking down my old Temerian friends, but I've struck an agreement with my pal Thaler, and he will keep an ear out for us. I'll be sure to tell him about these 'Agents' tomorrow. Want to come with me?" I shook my head and answered out loud. "For sure! It's better if he hears my information for the best accuracy". After that, we all went back to casual conversation and had a nice evening together.


	7. Chapter 7

I have to say that yesterday was quite exciting even if my life was put in danger. I finally have a lead on why I might have been brought to this world. "The Agents of the Undershroud", as they call themselves, wish to track me down and I have to say that the feeling is quite mutual between us, since I wish to find them as well. There's no point in hiding. I've proven my skills as a Witcher, so I know they can't take me down easily, especially with the help of Geralt, my wonderful Ciri, and Yennefer. I'm happy to know that I have powerful allies that are just as interested as me to find out the truth of why I exist here.

I realized that I still had to get out of bed and Geralt would want to talk to me soon. That's sort of a hard thing to do when a woman as beautiful as Ciri is lying beside you. At this point it was usually a contest of who could get out of bed first. I gathered my will and jumped out of the bed, rushing to put my clothes on. These medieval rags felt quite scratchy to wear, and they were nowhere near as comfortable to wear as the clothing I was accustomed to back in my world, but they were better than nothing. I rushed down to the main lobby of the inn to see Geralt and Yennefer waiting for me. "I almost thought you were never going to show, Notarin", Geralt said in a sarcastic tone. "Haha, very funny Geralt. Ciri will be down shortly as well", I responded. "She better be; this is no time for being lazy. Unfortunately, we can't stay in Vizima as long as we wanted to". "What do you mean, Geralt?", I asked. "Thaler visited me this morning and did some investigating. Word on the street is that a dead body was found in the outskirts by some drowner corpses. They found a badge that looked to be of an unidentified organization. Probably these 'Agents of the Undershroud' you were talking about. Thing is, it won't be long until a Witcher is suspected of this man's murder because of the drowner corpses. You did collect payment for that contract, so we'll have both the city guards and this organization on our tail". Geralt was right. We had to get out of here as soon as possible, but where to next? "So, where are you thinking we go next?", I asked Geralt. "We're going to go back to where you started, Novigrad. No portals this time. We go on horseback. I talked it over with Yen, and she isn't so happy about it, but we have to seek the aid of Triss". As Geralt explained the current plan of action, I heard steps coming from the stairs. Ciri had finally gotten out of bed and was ready for the day ahead, or so she thought probably. "Good morning, Ciri, we leave now", Geralt said in an authoritative tone. Ciri looked a little shocked. "Wait! Why are we… where are we… What's going on?", Ciri struggled to ask. "Just explained the whole thing to Notarin, no more time to explain. We leave now".

We left Vizima with two horses: Ciri and I on one; Geralt and Yennefer on the other. I had no experience riding, so Ciri took control of the horse, that is until she asked me if I wanted to try. "Hey Notarin, do you want to give this a shot? I feel like you could be a natural at this!" "I don't know, I guess I could give it a shot". Ciri and I switched places and I now had control of the horse. "Don't worry Notarin, I'll help you if there's any trouble!", Ciri said to ease my fears. "Ok, I got this! Let's go!", I exclaimed. Riding the horse felt weird at first, since this was very much the first time I've ever tried riding one. However, it wasn't long until I fell into a rhythm, a method of controlling the horse that made it feel as if it was responding to my every command. "See? What did I tell you? You're a natural at this, Notarin! Too bad we can't go on a more romantic ride right now", Ciri said in an excited manner. "Woah, Notarin! I guess I shouldn't be surprised, thinking about how fast you completed all that Witcher training", Geralt said. We rode for the rest of the day, but eventually we would need some rest. By the end of the day, we came across a quiet village. In fact, this village seemed a little too quiet to Geralt's liking. "I don't like the looks of this. Either everyone is inside their homes in fear of something, or something really bad has happened here. I'm going to go take a look", Geralt told us. "Can I come along too? I'm kind of in the mood for adventure", Ciri asked. "Fine, you can come along too, but Notarin and Yen are going to stay behind. Ok?"

The two headed off in the village to investigate. Yennefer gave me a playful look before she decided to speak. "So, it's just you and me, young Witcher. I know it won't be a little bit until they get back. How about we get our sore bums off these horses and have a little talk, shall we?", Yennefer asked in a flirtatious manner. "Uhhh… sure, I guess", I responded. We walked over to a large tree and sat under it. "I know that fool Geralt doesn't just want to see Triss because she'll help us!", Yennefer complained. "Sorry, what? Was there anything between Geralt and Triss?" "Yes, Notarin. Back when Geralt lost his memory, Triss took advantage of that and well… tried to make him her lover. We were always friends, but I could never quite forgive her for that". Yennefer looked sad all of a sudden. She clearly needed to vent about all of this for quite a bit of time, but I guess she never had the right person to talk about it with. "It's not like he's going to cheat on you, is he?", I asked. "I wouldn't put it beyond him. Ever since then, I've seen Geralt give that damned woman lustful eyes and I know there's still something there between them. Say, Notarin? Could you do me a favor?", Yennefer asked. "What might that be?" As soon as I asked, I suddenly noticed that I couldn't move my body. Yennefer started straddling on top of me in a seductive manner. This was not good. "Notarin? Can you please make me feel a little better? I know you have Ciri, but I need you to comfort me a little bit. No one will know, ok?" I struggled to break free, but I had no luck. "I cast a little spell that will keep you in one place. Don't worry, it's temporary. I know you wouldn't say no, but I just had to make sure. I can already tell you're hard, Notarin", Yennefer explained. "I can't… I can't do this! I can't betray her!" My conscious mind wanted to reject this, but my body was very aroused. "Notarin, we both know you're lying. Your body part down here tells the truth!", Yennefer said. "No! Please! Agh! Ahhh…" Yennefer began to remove my clothes, and before I knew it, she was taking full advantage of my current state.

As bad as I felt about it, I won't deny the physical pleasure I felt from Yennefer taking advantage of me. "I trust you won't tell anyone, or I could cast a nasty spell on you", Yennefer threatened. "No, I promise! I don't have it in me to tell Ciri that I've betrayed her!" "Good boy. Now let's wait for those two to return". We both sat in awkward silence for a little while. However, it wasn't too long before I could see Geralt and Ciri off in the distance. They were not wasting time getting back here. In fact, it was very apparent that they were in a rush. I could hear Geralt shouting as he approached closer to us. "Notarin! Yen! Get ready! We're in for some trouble!"


	8. Chapter 8

Geralt and Ciri were rushing towards me and Yennefer at a blistering pace. Geralt had just warned me of impending danger, so I took no time in pulling out my silver blade. It only took a few more seconds for Geralt and Ciri to get to both me and Yennefer. "The town is overrun with Wraiths! If we can take them out together, we'll have a place to rest for tonight! They'll come back though, and we won't have the time to rid them from this town completely". I nodded in response to Geralt and assumed a battle stance. I could see several ghoulish figures rushing towards us four as we prepared for their attack. Yennefer was clearly preparing a spell to cast to make this fight easier for all of us. I could see an explosion erupt from the ground and several of the wraiths disappeared. "The rest is up to you!", Yennefer stated. I could see the remaining wraiths inching closer and closer to us, but I had a feeling that I was quite ready for this. "Bring it on!", I yelled as I slashed a wraith that was rampaging towards me. I heard an ear-piercing scream as my blade ran through the apparition. The screaming stopped as the Wraith that was just attacking me vanished into thin air. "That was easy enough. Just a few more", I thought to myself. My blade cut through each ghastly body that came towards me. Soon enough, there was no more spirits left to see.

Geralt let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks for taking out a large portion of them Yennefer! Yennefer?" I turned around to check when Geralt seemed to have trouble finding Yennefer. There was no trouble finding her. However, the scene in front of us three was not what we had hoped for. A cloaked man, similar to the one I had met the other day, held a dagger to Yennefer's throat. "What the fuck do you want?", Geralt asked the man. "Oh, ho ho! Look what we've got here! Too bad our little sorceress here let me sneak up on her as she used more power than she should've fighting those lowly wraiths", the man mocked. "Geralt! This man… holds a great deal of power… I can sense it. It's best that you do whatever he asks", Yennefer said in a nervous tone. "You all act so predictably. You should've just used a portal. We have several of us along routes that we suspected you would take. I won't be nearly as easy to take down as the last one of us you cut down", the cloaked man said. "Cut the crap! What do you want? I defeated one of you already, so there isn't any way you could be a challenge for me!", I taunted. "Oh yeah? You still want to be taken by force? So be it then". Before I could react, the man moved his blade across Yennefer's neck in an instant, and she fell, lifeless, to the ground. "YOU FUCKER! I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS!", Geralt yelled at the top of his lungs. I too was filled with rage at what I had just seen. All three of us charged the man with a blinding rage. We didn't even think out an appropriate attack, we just rushed him with pure anger.

It quickly became clear that the man could use magic. We were just full of energy, charging at this rotten man who just killed Yennefer right in front of us. However, we were now on the ground, pushed by a shockwave cast by the cloaked man. "Just because you don't know who I am, doesn't mean I will be easy for you to take down", the cloaked man said. "Who exactly are you then? What are the 'Agents of the Undershroud' and why do they want me so much?", I asked. "Questions, questions, questions. You think you're in a position to ask questions when I clearly have the upper hand? To tell you the truth, this village was normal when I got here, but those wraiths came with me. I baited them here to make this whole village a trap for you, and you fell for it big time", the cloaked man explained. "So, you mean to say that you killed an entire village of innocents just so you could set a trap for us?", I asked in an angry tone. "Why yes! Of course! There's nothing wrong with it, the chaos caused by it only makes the Undershroud stronger, why wouldn't I do that? By the way, I never planned to spare your precious sorceress here, since her death would be very pleasing to the Undershroud. Also, the only way you'll get your answers to your questions is through my dead body, so good luck. Or you could just surrender and come with me".

It was hard for me to contain my rage for this rotten monster. However, Geralt himself had an even harder time containing his rage. It seemed as if the cloaked man had made a mistake by talking to me for an extended time, because Geralt was rushing towards the man's exposed side. "TAKE THIS YOU ROTTEN, SHITFUCKED MOTHERFUCKER!", Geralt yelled as he attacked. "What the fuck?", the man asked as he was taken by surprise. The man hopped away from Geralt's attack, but his arm was clearly wounded by the sword slash. The man was currently focused on his clash with Geralt, so I had an opening. I decided to use the Axii sign to influence the man's mind. I rushed towards him, but he was able to negate the effect of my Axii sign quite quickly. "You think little parlor tricks like that can have any real effect on me? You are sorely mistaken. It will take more than that to beat me!", the cloaked man said as he dodged my attacks. "You will not get away with what you did!", I yelled as I swung my sword at his body.

As Geralt and I distracted the man, I realized that I hadn't seen Ciri since we got knocked to the ground. At that moment, Ciri appeared out of nowhere, right behind the man we were attacking. She slashed at his back and the attack seemed to hit, but the man had keen senses, so he was able to get out of the way before the attack could prove to be fatal for him. "Damn it all! Notarin! I know you have some incredible magical potential! Think beyond signs right now! If you can do something, we can defeat him!", Ciri shouted.

I had to think of something quick before any more of us could die. I know my powers are unnatural, so it wouldn't come as any surprise that I could use magic more powerful than signs. "Geralt, keep him busy! I might have an idea!", I instructed. "Understood", Geralt replied. I focused my energy, not on battle, but my magical potential. I just saw Ciri teleport behind that man, would I be able to do it as well? I looked at the area above the man. "Maybe if I took him from above…", I thought to myself. I entered a calm state where everything seemed to move 5 times slower than normal. In my meditative state, I was able to pull off something incredible. I was now above the man, falling towards him. I aimed my blade at his head, and as soon as I knew it, I was on the ground, my blade pierced through his skull. "I… I… did it. Felt satisfying to kill this fucker", I said. "Incredible, Notarin! Only if you had used that when my beloved Yen was still alive!", Geralt said in frustration. "We'll have time to mourn after, gotta search the corpse so we might be able to find a lead. These 'Agents of the Undershroud' are definitely on our shitlist now", Ciri stated.

We all scavenged the dead man's pockets in hopes of finding any clue. "I got something!", Geralt shouted. Ciri and I looked at what Geralt had in his hand. It looked like a device; one that was quite familiar to me actually. "Is that… a phone?", I asked. Geralt looked confused. "A what? You know what this is?" "I think I actually do. See, in our world, we carry around these compact but powerful computational devices known as phones. We can use them to communicate with people across vast distances very quickly. If the 'Agents of the Undershoud' can use phones, no wonder they can plan things out this effectively. Phones require a certain kind of infrastructure to work in our world though, so I have no idea how they get this to work", I explained. "Huh, they can probably use magic to power these things. We'll take it to Triss when we reach Novigrad. I'm still in disbelief of what happened tonight", Geralt said. "Yes, it's best we get some rest. We can give Yennefer a proper burial tomorrow. There's probably an empty house we can stay for the night", Ciri suggested. We all agreed and then searched out for a place to stay.

It didn't take us too long for us to find a place to stay. We ate some dinner while we sat in awkward silence, pondering the tragic events that occurred earlier. "This has become a nightmare", Geralt stated. Ciri and I nodded in agreement. "Let's just get some sleep, ok?", I suggested. Geralt went off to his own room while Ciri and I went into another. We got into bed, but it was clear we were going to have a hard time getting to sleep. "I smell her on you. That damned lilac and gooseberries", Ciri stated. "I'll be honest, while you two were investigating, she cast a spell and took advantage of me". Ciri looked completely stunned by what I just said. "What? You mean that she did '_you know what'_ to you?", Ciri said in an enraged expression. "Yes, I didn't really have any say in the matter. I felt so bad, but even though she did that, I still feel really bad that she died". "Damn it! I knew I was right to be suspicious of her! No matter, she is no longer with us. I'll keep it a secret from Geralt. If he found out, you would feel his wrath", Ciri said. We eventually fell asleep, wondering whatever was awaiting us in the days ahead.


	9. Chapter 9

Morning came, and I was awoken from my rather pleasant dream that took the stress off my current situation. "Notarin! Ciri! We need to get going now! We're taking Yennefer's body with us!", Geralt urged. We both reluctantly sat up and got out of the bed. There was no time for breakfast, and we had to hit the road on an empty stomach. Our first plan of action was to find a proper burial place for Yennefer. We had no access to portals, so we were going to have to find a cozy and idyllic place for her body to rest while roaming through Temeria. We eventually came across a river with a hill overlooking it. This seemed like a better fit than any place we were going to find on our way to Novigrad.

We began digging the final resting place for Yennefer. I looked over at Geralt while he was digging. This was the first time I've ever seen him shed a tear. He clearly cared very much about her, despite the fact that Yennefer was suspicious of that while she was living. I hoped that her spirit could witness how much Geralt mourned for her loss. Geralt's slight tears suddenly became a waterfall of sorrow, and he could no longer bear to dig his lover's grave anymore. I continued to dig for him as he collapsed on his knees in a mix of anger and sadness. "FUCK! I CAN'T TAKE THIS SHIT ANYMORE! Let me know when you're done. We'll leave after", Geralt said. Ciri and I completed digging duties and before long the grave was ready for Yennefer's body.

Looking into her lifeless eyes disturbed me as I thought about the past few days. The woman raped me last night, yet I felt an immense sadness to see her go. She wasn't a bad person, but she was never able to properly voice her issues in a healthy way, resulting in an occurrence like last night. I wanted her to live and make her happy in any way I could, but it was too late for that. Ciri and I grabbed her body and lowered it into her final resting place. We then piled the dirt on top of her body and the job was done. "Is it over now? Can we finally go?", Geralt asked. I was about to reply "yes", but I heard footsteps in the distance approach us and a voice was heard. "I just saw you fellows while I was travelling on the road. It looks like you've lost a companion, so I wanted to help you out a bit". A man appeared from the group of bushes behind us, looking well-dressed along with glasses and a large hat. "Who are you?", asked Geralt. "Me? I'm just what you would call a travelling salesman. People line up to buy my rare goods that can't be found elsewhere. I think I've got some things that could make you all feel a little better. Say, why don't we find a rest stop and I'll show you what I got?", the man asked. "We really have to get moving, unfortunately", Geralt stated. "It won't take long, I promise. I can tell there's a lot of pain in you. Wouldn't easing it a bit make the journey a bit more bearable?" Geralt stood there thinking for a second until he responded. "Sure, why not. I could stand to feel a little better honestly. You got a name?" "Call me Conrad", the man suggested. "Sure Conrad. I'm Geralt of Rivia, the famed monster slayer". "Ah yes, Geralt! 'The White Wolf'! 'The Butcher of Blaviken'! I've heard many tales about you. And I assume these are your travelling companions?", Conrad asked. "Yes. We're headed for Novigrad on urgent business, so please make this quick".

We travelled together with Conrad for a while until we came across a small cave where a fire could be set up. Rain droplets were beginning to fall from the sky, so we needed to take shelter soon. We gathered the firewood we could before it got too wet. All of us formed a circle around the fire that was just lit as the rain began to pound against the ground outside. Conrad put his satchel off his lap and pulled out what looked to be some herbs and paper. The paper rolled up the herbs and soon it was quite apparent to me what this was supposed to be. "Is that… Marijuana?", I asked. "Why yes, how do you know?", Conrad asked me in a suspicious tone. I decide it was best to answer in a vague way. "I come from a long way away, and it is popular among people where I'm from". "So, you're familiar with its effects, right?", Conrad inquired. "Well, sort of, but I've never done it before. It's popular but it's illegal, so I never took the risk". Conrad let out a little chuckle and opened his mouth again. "You want to finally give it a try? That goes for all of you as well", Conrad asked as he showed the rolled-up joint in his hand. "Sure, I want to see what all the hype is about!", I responded.

Conrad handed me the joint and I lit it from the campfire. I brought the joint up to my mouth and inhaled deeply. I suddenly felt a jarring pain in my lungs, and I began to cough like a mad man. "Notarin! Are you going to be ok? Respond, Notarin!", Ciri said in a very concerned tone. "Ack! I'm going to be alright. I'm feeling pretty good right now actually. Want to give it a go Ciri?", I asked. "Uh, I don't know. I guess if you're fine, I'll try". I handed Ciri the joint and she did the same as I did. I heard her violently cough, but soon she seemed to be in a more relaxed state. "Woah, this is some pretty good shit. Want some, Geralt?", Ciri offered. "No thanks, Ciri. This isn't the time for me to alter my state". Conrad looked concerned at Geralt's response to Ciri. He sat there observing Geralt for a little bit before opening his mouth. "Are you sure, Geralt? You seem to be the saddest of all. I can guarantee that this will make you feel a bit better". Geralt shook his head. "I'm sure. I can't be certain that we're ever safe. So, at least I must always be alert", Geralt responded. A visible look of frustration formed on Conrad's face when Geralt refused his offer for a second time. "Just take a hit from the damn joint, will you?", Conrad demanded. "Hey! You two! Chill out, would ya? This is time for peace, man!", I shouted. Geralt and Conrad continued to argue, but then Ciri jumped right in front of my face. "Hey man, you know what would be funny? What if, like… we had 'fun' together while those two dumb fucks continue to argue? That would be pretty funny, right? They won't even notice since they're so absorbed in not having fun right now. That would be really funny, right?", Ciri let out a little devilish grin on her face as she spoke. "Haha, yeah, that would be pretty fucking funny", I responded. Ciri then pulled down my pants and began to please me with her mouth in plain sight of Geralt and Conrad.

"My god, I know you two are high, but can you please at least show a little decency?", Conrad asked as he quickly caught on to what was going on. Ciri backed away from me quickly as her cheeks were flushed bright red. "Uh… Sorry, we thought you wouldn't… notice", Ciri said. Conrad started to approach us, that is until Geralt snuck up on him from behind and struck him with his blade, killing him instantly. "WHAT THE FUCK, GERALT?", I shouted. "Conrad was an agent, I had to dispose of him as quickly as possible", Geralt responded. "Why? How do you know? He was pretty chill, man. Don't know why you had to kill him", I said in protest. Geralt let out a sigh and began to explain his actions. "It became clear during our argument that he was an agent. He wasn't a chill dude, but instead was a monster that's guilty by association. He didn't say outright that he was a part of the 'Agents of the Undershroud', but he did say that he was tracking us down all this time, and really wanted us to try his weed. Weaker agents know that they can't take us down with conventional methods now. They're starting to get smarter and more creative with their tactics. This entire encounter was a trap. That phone is probably tracking us, but at the same time it's also our only lead. We need to leave now, so get your pants back on, Notarin. I don't want to see your penis ever again" "Sorry! I was really high! I didn't realize…", I blushed and put my pants back on in a hurry.

We were about to leave the cave until we were confronted by three cloaked figures. "You figured out Conrad set up a trap, I see. But you were still too late!", one of the cloaked figures said. "Damn it all!", Geralt uttered. One of the other cloaked men began to speak. "We are weak by ourselves, but we should be able to handle you three in a group. Besides, we might be able to persuade you this time. We have someone dear to you, someone by the name of 'Hikuminmai Asaho'" "You can't be telling the truth, that's impossible!", I responded. "It's quite possible for our guild, actually. You only need to come with us to find out how it is possible, and that is if you care about her too. She's quite a fun one to play around with, you know", one of the cloaked men said. "Notarin, whatever you do, don't go with them! We'll find a way to save Asaho later if they're telling the truth!", Geralt demanded. "I have no plans to go with these bastards, and they will pay for whatever they have done to my poor Asaho!", I responded. We all readied our blades to strike these horrible bastards down. The Agents think they're hunting me down, but they've got it all wrong. In reality, they're my prey.


	10. Chapter 10

I had no plans to fight defensively; I wasn't going to wait for the cloaked men to attack. I was going to act first and make sure to take them by surprise. I focused my energy like the last time I fought one of these agents. I teleported behind one of them and struck them down. "Fuck!", one of the cloaked men yelled as they backed off from their friend that was just killed. "You think you could take us down easily? You fucked with the wrong Witchers!", I yelled. The two remaining cloaked men seemed shocked at what had just occurred, but they were quick to calm themselves down. It wasn't long until one of them opened one of their mouths. "Ha! Pretty impressive, but did you really not think that we didn't have any idea what you might be capable of? Rise, Conrad and Alexander! See the light of day once more!" The cloaked man extended his hands and the bodies of Conrad and the man that had just fallen to my blade, Alexander, started to rise and stand on their own two feet!

"Notarin! Ciri! We're outnumbered and we really don't know what they're capable of! Let's just run!", instructed Geralt. The cloaked man who just seemed to resurrect the dead continued to boast. "Witness the pure power that the Undershroud grants! You, who goes by the name of Notarin! You are the Undershroud's chosen! Therefore, your destiny lies with us!" All three of us made a mad dash for the cave's exit. Geralt and I used Aard as quickly as possible to knock down rock above our heads and cause a cave in. "That will hold them off, but not for very long. Quick! Let's get to the horses!", Geralt demanded. "Uh Geralt, we might need to think of another plan!", Ciri added. Both Geralt and I looked towards where Ciri was pointing and we understood what she meant immediately. They had slaughtered our horses so there was no easy means of escape. "Damn! You know what? No more running for me. I can take them on! I think this weed I smoked earlier has given me enhanced reflexes and can change my perception of time, so they shouldn't be a challenge!", I said. "Notarin, this could be suicide! Think twice!", Geralt demanded. "No, I can't let these fuckers get away", I responded.

An explosive sound was heard, and rocks came tumbling out of the cave entrance. The agents were now free and weren't going to show us any mercy. "You think that petty cave in could stop us? Think again! Notarin is coming with us, and the other two of you are going to be rotten meat by the time I'm done with you!", one of the cloaked men said. "You couldn't be more wrong. I'm more powerful than any of you will ever be!", I taunted. "Oh yeah? Well just give it a shot then, eh?", the cloaked man responded. "I will", I said as my perception of time slowed. It almost felt like playing one of those Sonic games I used to play as a kid. I could go faster than any of the men attacking me. Even their magic would have no effect since they had no time to cast it. I couldn't waste my energy on teleporting this time, so I had to make use of every action I could take. I made a mad dash towards the cloaked man who boasted about his abilities. He seemed the most dangerous of the bunch if he could resurrect the dead. I was moving quicker than his eye was able to track. I could see him try to react, but he had no luck in stopping me. I slashed through his gut and he fell to the ground. However, as soon as I struck him down, I noticed the resurrected Alexander began to conjure a spell of some sorts. I had to stop him as soon as possible, although he was a great distance away. Even though my perception of time was slowed, I wouldn't be fast enough to stop his spell in time. He was able to cast it and soon I noticed the effect of the weed had been negated.

"I see you're one of the rare types this strain of weed works on. However, Alexander can negate those effects of this strain quite easily though, so you're going to have to play on an even field here", Conrad said. I continued rushing towards Alexander as he taunted me. "You wasted so much energy that first time you killed me. Think you'll have enough to kill me again?" "No, but you're forgetting I have friends with me," I said as Ciri teleported behind Alexander and drove her blade through him. "Damn you, you're better than I thought you ever would be…", Alexander said in his last dying breaths. He then fell to the ground and died once more.

There was no sign of the third cloaked figure that was among these agents. They must have realized that this was a losing battle and fled to make sure they'd live another day. Conrad was alive again and it was in our best interests to keep him alive for now to see if he had any information, since his trap had failed. "You're going to answer some of our questions now if you value your life!", Geralt told Conrad. Conrad let out a smirk and responded. "Haha, the magic used to resurrect me only lasts a very limited amount of time. The wound that killed me is still open, so I really do not care if I die sooner or just a little bit later. I will tell you nothing". Geralt had a visible look of anger on his face. "Oh, you will tell us everything, trust me". Geralt cast the sign of Axii to influence Conrad's mind. "Now tell me, what is this 'Undershroud' that you and your guild worship?", Geralt asked. The sign of Axii clearly had an effect on Conrad, so he responded. "In every universe and on every planet, there exists the presence of what is known as 'shrouds'. The most common ones are found on every planet are known as the 'Undershroud' and the 'Overshroud'. Others are theorized to exist, yet no one has been able to discover a unique type of shroud yet. An Overshroud is the embodiment of a planet's overall positivity and order, while an Undershroud is the embodiment of a planet's overall negativity and chaos. The stronger a shroud is, the stronger its effect on the planet is. We serve to strengthen the Undershroud in turn for the power it grants us. We have several in our guild for several reasons, but right now we're after that young Witcher you have with you. He is the key to unparalleled power that has yet to be fully witnessed", Conrad explained. "Great, so now can you tell us where all your friends are situated? We'd like to have a nice chat with them", Geralt asked. "No, I shall not tell you", Conrad responded. "Damn it! Even Axii won't get an answer for that question out of this guy! Ok, one last question. Who is the cloaked person who fled this battle and where are they headed?" "I shall not tell you their name, but you sure do know them well, White Wolf. I can tell they're headed to Novigrad like you folk are. Farewell then. These are my last words", Conrad uttered as he drew his last breaths.

"Damn it! We have no horses, so we're going to have to hike the rest of the way to Novigrad. At least it shouldn't be too far at this point", Geralt stated. "That was quite the encounter. I'm going to take Conrad's satchel with me, ok? That weed was good shit and it helped me in battle", I said. Geralt looked like he was a bit angry at me, but I didn't know how to respond to that. Honestly, while the situation has been stressful, this is the most adventure I've ever experienced in my life, so I'm sort of happy. I'm looking forward to taking a hit from another joint with Ciri later. "Notarin, this isn't fun and games. We lost Yennefer, getting high back there didn't help anyone, I had to see your penis, and now we're neck deep into some seriously fucked up cult business!", Geralt complained. "Sorry Geralt, I didn't mean to look like I wasn't taking the situation seriously, I just like to lighten up once and a while". Geralt clearly didn't like my excuse, but we carried on our journey to Novigrad.


	11. Chapter 11

We were finally getting close to the city where my adventure began. Our trip had been quite a difficult one, but we were finally going to get to our destination soon. I could see the city off in the distance, and even though I've only been in this world for about a week, it feels like forever since I was last in Novigrad. Geralt was not in the mood to talk for the rest of the trip. It seemed as if he almost held a grudge against me or something. He has experienced a devastating loss, and it will be a while until he completely recovers from it.

"We're almost there! First stop should be Dandelion's tavern, right?", I asked. All I got in response was a silent nod from both Geralt and Ciri. We hiked together in silence the rest of the way. I had time to think over all the events that occurred up until now and how it has affected me and those around me. There was no way I could tell Geralt the fact that Yennefer betrayed him; the man was broken enough as it was. Perhaps a meeting with his old friend would make him feel better.

We eventually arrived in Novigrad and headed towards Dandelion's tavern. We only took a few steps inside until we were greeted by a recognizably cheerful man. "Geralt! Ciri! That young Witcher! Notarin; that was your name, yes? You're all unexpected, but it's quite nice to see you here! But where's Yennefer? I thought she was with you, Geralt", Dandelion said. "Dandelion, Yen is… dead", Geralt responded. Dandelion's eyes suddenly became wide open in shock. "No! This can't be… You can't be telling the truth Geralt! How could such a horrible thing happen? No, no, no, no, no, I don't want to have to write a sad ballad!" "I don't care about your fucking ballads right now! The one I love is dead! There's no way I can bring her back, Dandelion! Don't you understand? Yennefer is fucking dead!", Geralt spouted in frustration. I was honestly taken aback by how angry Geralt seemed. He seemed calm for most of the journey, but he had to let his frustration loose at some point. "Sorry, Geralt. I know how much she meant to you. I really wish we could be reuniting on better terms", Dandelion responded. "It's alright. I'm sorry to lash out at you like that. I've just been keeping these feelings to myself for a while these two get high and do indecent acts in front of my face", Geralt said while pointing to Ciri and I. We both blushed and wanted to respond, but we both knew that he wasn't wrong. "We were in an altered state, alright?", Ciri protested. "Yes, I know. But smoking that herb might've not been the smartest idea after all that has occurred", Geralt responded. "It was pretty fucking sweet though, not gonna lie. You have to try it out, Dandelion!", I added. Dandelion looked like he had just experienced some serious second-hand embarrassment from what he just heard, and he could only respond to me with a simple "yes".

We sat down with Dandelion to eat the first proper meal we experienced in a while. "So, what brings you all to Novigrad?", Dandelion asked. "Well, we originally needed to escape the inevitable heat that was going to follow us after Notarin killed a member of what is known as the 'Agents of the Undershroud' in self-defense. We were able to get away from the city guards in time, but the 'Agents of the Undershroud' are a much bigger threat then we could've ever realized. Notarin recognized one of the devices that one of the agents held though, so we took it with us. Problem is, we have trouble getting into it, so we thought that Triss might be able to help. Is she still here in Novigrad?", Geralt asked. "To tell you the truth Geralt, Triss is missing. I haven't seen her since I sent Notarin to seek help from her. I wouldn't have any clue where she is!", Dandelion responded. "Damn it! I better fucking hope that these goddamn agents haven't gotten to her! We gotta find her! Now!", Geralt demanded. "Let's go to the place where I met her", I suggested. Everyone nodded in agreement with my suggestion. "Follow me, everyone! I can't find any leads there myself, but a Witcher can!", Dandelion said in excitement.

Walking through Novigrad again, I noticed the strange looks everyone was giving me. They all looked at me like I was an alien or something, and in some sense, they weren't completely wrong. This world is still fairly alien to myself, but I've already integrated into this society so much already. I guess it's just because I'm a Witcher. Witchers will never be able to be fully considered a true person by the humans that live here. I never got to experience it during my life in Japan, but I guess this is what racism feels like. "You look uncomfortable, darling", Ciri observed. "Oh, I'm fine. Everyone in this town is giving me funny looks though", I said. "Yeah, life is tough for a Witcher. You do everyone a big favor and you get some coin, but no respect. I think that they're all jealous of what you're capable of, honestly. And it's too bad that they would turn down such a nice hunk of meat such as you", Ciri said as she completed her statement with a giggle. It took a while, but we finally found our way to the place Triss was staying the last time I was here.

"This is the place!", Dandelion stated. "What are we waiting for then? Let's go in", Geralt suggested. We made our way inside the old but inconspicuous building to find it almost completely empty. This wasn't the way it was last time. "It's definitely going to take more than just a basic search to find any clues in this place," Geralt said. We began searching the room thoroughly until we heard unknown footsteps approaching us. "Why, hello! Can I ask what you're doing barging into my place?", an unknown, but seemingly familiar voice said. I turned around and to all our surprise, Triss was right in front of us. "Triss! I thought you went missing! You had me worried sick! Why is your place empty? Why haven't you contacted me for the past several days?", Dandelion asked. "Sorry, I had very urgent matters to attend to and I couldn't stay here. I came back because I realized I forgot something, only to find you four in here", Triss responded. She paused for a moment, and then continued. "Geralt, where is Yennefer? Wasn't she going to stay with you this time, or has she gone running off in some direction opposite of you?", Triss asked. "I really wish that was the case, Triss. But the truth is, Yen is dead. Some fuckers calling themselves the 'Agents of the Undershroud' were responsible, and we need your help with them unfortunately", Geralt responded. Triss remained silent for a moment while she formed a sorrowful face. "I'm sorry. That's terrible. I never thought there was anyone who could take her down. I'm honestly in disbelief. I really want to help you, but your Witcher boy here owes me a little debt for helping him out. That would be ok, right? Because I could really use his help right now with something. It's urgent", Triss said. "Fine, but this needs to be quick, ok? We really don't know how long we have until those agents find us again", Geralt responded. "It's totally fine with me! I definitely owe you something as a thanks for helping me to get to Kaer Morhen", I added. "Thank you, Notarin. Trust me. This won't be long, ok? Just follow me", Triss requested.

I followed Triss outside the old building and we walked through some of the alleys of Novigrad. I had no idea where she was taking me, but I would find out soon. Eventually, we found ourselves in an underground area of the city. I don't know why she had to keep where we were going a mystery, so I was starting to get worried. Triss seemed to cast a spell on one of the walls of the underground tunnel and revealed a door. We walked inside to find a wonderfully furnished room; it was totally out of place compared to the rest of the underground area. "We're finally here", said Triss. "So, what do you want me to do?", I asked. "Be my slave", Triss responded with a menacing grin. "What? What do you mean?" I asked. I then felt a force suddenly shove me on to the bed of this room and I was paralyzed. "I know you're confused. To tell you the truth, I was the third cloaked figure among those agents you defeated back there. I'm officially a part of their group, but in all honesty, I was just using them all for my own gain. They needed someone powerful like me to help them find you, and our goals were mutual, but I wasn't just about to give you up to them. I wanted to keep you all to myself. We could easily track your group with that device that our agent had on them. It's not a device I am familiar with, but some of the agents are out of this world, literally. Anyways, no one will find us here. I made sure of that", Triss explained. "Why do you want me? What did I ever do to deserve this? Let me go, damn it!", I demanded. "Why do I want you? It's quite simple really. I just want you. After that damned Yennefer ruined all my attempts to attract Geralt, I've been having some really big cravings for some giant Witcher meat. Geralt is getting too old anyways, but you're young and energetic. Just what I need. I can show you things that your beloved Asaho would never be capable of", Triss responded. "You know about Asaho? Where are you guys keeping her?", I asked urgently. "Of course I know about her! Don't you remember anything about the exchange you had with us? Maybe I'll tell you eventually, but it won't matter, since you'll serve only me and you'll come to be happy about it", Triss answered. I had no clue what I was going to do. I was trapped and there was no apparent way for me to get out. I guess I would have to tough this out until an escape presented itself to me. I can only hope the others will do their best to search for me.


	12. Chapter 12

Was this the end of my journey? Paralyzed, under the control of Triss in an underground pleasure dungeon? I couldn't believe that such a trusted friend of Geralt's would betray me like this. I asked Triss yet another question. "Triss, why didn't you reveal yourself to us back near the cave? Why didn't you kidnap me when you had the chance last time you helped me?" "That's quite easy to answer, young one. I only joined this group of 'Undershroud' worshippers recently after I met you, so I could track you down. When I met you, I felt an overwhelming urge to keep you with me at my side. I honestly never desired anyone as badly as you, my dear Witcher. Back at the cave, I had to retreat and keep my identity a secret because my plan to capture you would fail if you all found out my identity there. Anyways, enough of this pointless chit-chat. How about we have a bit of fun?", Triss asked.

I gulped in distress as I figured out what she meant by "fun". "Hold on! There's someone else I care about! Please! I don't want this!", I yelled. Triss laughed maniacally and then responded. "Haha, you will soon forget about any other girl. I will show you true pleasure. It will be leaps and bounds beyond anything you could've experienced thus far. Just relax. You won't break out of that paralysis spell, so you might as well enjoy yourself, handsome" I kept struggling to break my paralysis to no effect. "No! Please! Stop! We can still be friends! Mmmpphh!..." Triss sat against my face as I pleaded. It wasn't long until I found myself being forced to partake in 69 style sex. "You say you're not enjoying this, but your body is telling a different story!", Triss said. "Please! I just want this to stop! No, I don't want to be inside you while I can't escape! Please stop!", I continued pleading. "What's to worry about? Witchers are sterile, so you won't have to worry about knocking me up! Since you clearly enjoy this, but don't want to admit it, I suggest you don't waste your energy on pleading for freedom. Once you prove to be a good slave, I won't need to use this paralysis spell anymore", Triss explained. This was fucking awful. I can't deny that she was wrong in the fact that my body was enjoying this. In fact, my body is feeling quite satisfied by this whole scenario, but that doesn't change the fact that this feels completely wrong. I should be hunting down the Agents of the Undershroud, not getting forced to do sexual favors for a sexually frustrated sorceress.

Once Triss had her "fill", so to speak, she got dressed, but left me paralyzed on the bed. "You're just going to leave me like this? Naked? In this embarrassing position?", I asked. "Of course! As I said, from now on, you're my slave. You better just accept that at this point. Anyhow, I must go tell your friends that you 'unfortunately lost to a skilled agent that found us on the way and were taken away'. At least that's not that far from the truth, is it not? I'll be looking forward to coming back to enjoy you more. Maybe we could try some cock and ball torture next time", Triss replied. "You wouldn't dare!", I yelled as I embarrassingly felt a certain part of my body get hard again. Triss ignored me and went on her way to Geralt and the others. I had to break out of this paralysis no matter what before she got back here. I know that I have unnatural power in me, so a simple paralysis spell such as this one should be easy for me to break out of, but I didn't know how. I quickly realized that the problem I was experiencing breaking out of this paralysis was the fact that I wasn't calm and couldn't focus my energy. With Triss gone, I could now focus, and I felt control being slowly returned to my limbs. With a bit of effort, I could lift my back off the bed, and now I was sitting upright.

It quickly became apparent that Triss took my clothes with her, perhaps as a fail-safe in case I happened to break out of paralysis. I wasn't going to let that stop me though, even if I had to embarrass myself a little bit. Getting to my friends was my priority no matter what. I stumbled around as I tried to regain my strength to move. I managed to escape the room and with a bit of struggling, I found myself back in a Novigrad alley. It didn't take long until civilians took notice of my "no clothes" predicament. "Guards! Stop this man! This is a disgusting display of public indecency!", Now that attention was on me, and I had nothing to properly protect myself with, I had to find a way to Geralt and the others as fast as possible. I still had my sword with me but getting into a fight without any armor would be a bad idea. I could see the guards in the distance running after me, so I either had to lose them, or I had to think up something more extraordinary. I focused all my energy again and thought about the place that Geralt and I were just investigating not too long ago. I disappeared out of sight from the guards in an instant, and then I found myself butt-naked in front of Geralt, Ciri, Dandelion, and Triss.

"What's the meaning of this, Triss! And Notarin, I told you that I never wanted to see your penis ever again!", Geralt shouted. "This woman is a lying bitch!", I said as I pointed towards Triss. "What? What do you mean? Triss, explain yourself!", Geralt demanded. "Aghh! Damn it! I underestimated this damn kid! Geralt, you would be willing to forgive me, right? I'll tell the truth. I needed to do some important research on this boy. I wanted to keep him safe from those agents as well, ok? I just couldn't tell you the truth from the beginning, since I know you all wouldn't let me do what I needed to get done", Triss explained. "She's not telling the truth. She's telling you a big, fat lie", I quickly added. Geralt clearly looked puzzled by our conflicting positions. "It's your turn to explain, Notarin. Honestly, I don't want to believe that Triss has done anything wrong, but I'll hear you out", Geralt said. "Fine. Want to know why I showed up here butt-naked? She has my clothes. She's been lusting after me all this time and had cooperated with the Agents of the Undershroud so she could have an easier time finding me. She had planned to keep me as her personal sex slave to satisfy her sick desires", I explained. Geralt formed a frown and was not impressed by what he just heard. "Triss, is what he said true? If so, you better fucking tell us where those agents are hiding! You better talk quick, because my patience is running thin here!", Geralt demanded. "I don't know what Notarin is talking about! He must've just experienced some hallucinations or something. I don't know where the agents are!", Triss responded.

I could feel a rage inside me fuming at this point. I couldn't take anymore bullshit from Triss. I was going to make her tell the truth. Before Triss could react, I pounced on her and smashed her into the ground, my weight paralyzing her. "Bitch! You see how it feels to be paralyzed now? Geralt! Grab her satchel! My clothes should be in there!", I shouted. Geralt nodded in agreement and pulled my clothes out of my satchel. "Just as I thought! You thought taking my clothes would stop me? You know nothing about me or what I'm capable of. Underestimate me again and I'll kill you. Now, tell me where the fuck the Agents of the Undershroud are located!", I demanded. Triss, who just seemed shocked a second ago, let out a small smirk on her face. "You fucked with the wrong sorceress, kid", Triss mumbled as I felt a force knock me back against the wall. "I gotta get outta here, sorry!", Dandelion stated. Dandelion dashed for the exit but was blocked by a magic barrier. "No one leaves. I didn't think it would have to come to this, but I now must show you all my true power; power that the Undershroud has granted me. I am now one of the most powerful sorceresses in the world! Yennefer would look pathetic next to me now! HAHAHAHA!", Triss boasted. It now seemed that we would have to defeat Triss if we wanted to get anything out of her. I didn't have time to put my clothes back on, but my blade was more ready to strike than ever.


	13. Chapter 13

We were all trapped inside this old building with Triss, or that's what Triss thought. Triss managed to fool me once, but now that I had my friends to help me, she stood no chance. I didn't care what powers the Undershroud gave her; I bet they were nothing compared to my party's combined power. "HAHA! You fools shall taste my might and Notarin will be mine, for eternity!", Triss shouted. "Notarin, we don't know what she's capable of! Don't do anything too crazy!", Geralt demanded. I knew that he was probably right, but I had a gut feeling that I had to do something right away. "I'm sorry Geralt, but I need to act before she does something crazy. We need to neutralize her now!", I shouted as I lunged myself towards Triss. Her face lit up with a huge grin as I readied myself to swing my sword.

My sword would not strike her.

I felt a force blow me away from her in an instant, and then I felt myself crash against the ceiling of the building and breaking through, making an opening and spitting me out on the roof of the building. My naked body was once again exposed to the public. "Notarin! You have a way to escape now! Just run! We'll find a way to manage!", Ciri shouted. I wish I could escape, but the blow I felt while crashing through the ceiling took its toll on me.

Throughout all my travels, I have never met an opponent as powerful as Triss. She was truly granted powers beyond anyone's comprehension. I became very much afraid that she might be successful in making me her eternal sex slave. Thoughts raced through my head as I struggled to get back on my own two feet, but I had no luck.

I wish I had the power to save my friends.

I couldn't just abandon them, even though that would be impossible in my state.

"Notarin! What are you doing? Go now! Do you hear me? NOW!", Geralt demanded. "I… I… can't", I responded with a weak voice. Triss entered my line of sight again as she appeared to ascend into the sky.

It was almost as if she could fly.

No, she could fly.

"Oh, Notarin. What a noble attempt from you, but you must accept that you will never be able to match my power!", Triss stated. She levitated closer and closer to me. It was all over for me, unless I could think of something quick. It wouldn't matter if I thought of anything anyway, since I had no power left in me to do anything. "Give up. Admit defeat. Embrace your new life as my wonderful slave. You'll be happier that way", Triss taunted. I could feel a sense of rage boil up inside of me, as if something was about to burst. "I won't… I won't…", I struggled to let out the words. "'You won't' what? You can't do anything! You're hopeless!", Triss responded. "I won't… let you… ENSLAVE ME, YOU BITCH OF A WITCH!", I yelled.

I felt a surge of power spread throughout me. I could now feel myself lift in the air. I could fly, just like her.

No.

_Better _than her.

"How… How can you? How is this possible? No! You do not stand a chance! You will be my slave!", Triss shouted in denial. "You underestimate my power, Triss. I don't know why I was brought to this world, but I've learned that no one should fuck with me. Now, let's fucking dance", I responded. The look of disappointment and anger on Triss's face was quite an enjoyable sight for me to behold.

I didn't take any more time to fuck around. My increased speed let me bolt directly towards her, taking her by surprise. I dragged her along the rooftops of Novigrad until I threw her into a building, sticking her into a wall. She was noticeably panting after taking a direct beating. "Heh, not bad. Not bad at all, Notarin. However, it'll take more than that to defeat me. You haven't seen the true extent of my powers yet!", Triss bragged. "Oh yeah? We'll see about that. Show me what you got!", I responded.

I could see Triss preparing a spell, and it was clear that this was meant to be a powerful one. I could see a big ball of energy hurling towards me, but I already knew it was too slow for my speed. I effortlessly dodged Triss's attack, but it became clear to me that it was a decoy to put me where she wanted me. I could see a second attack headed towards me at blinding speed, and I only had an instant to dodge it. The attack grazed me a bit, but I managed to avoid most of the damage it could have caused. It honestly didn't feel like that powerful of an attack.

"WHAT? HOW? THIS… ISN'T… POSSIBLE! YOU… YOU… WERE SUPPOSED TO BE MY SLAVE!", Triss yelled. "I'm sorry Triss, but I have more important things to do than you. This is coming to an end now", I said. I grabbed her once more and flew her into the building where my friends were. I crashed her into the ground and stunned her. "Geralt, pass me my sword", I requested. Geralt nodded and handed me my silver. I stuck the blade through her chest, pinning her to the ground. "AAHHH! IT HURTS! IT FUCKING HURTS!", Triss screamed. At that moment, it felt as if her essence, her power, transferred over to me. "You will tell us everything you know about the Agents of the Undershroud," I demanded. I saw tears start to form in Triss's eyes before she responded.

"I… I… will tell you everything. But first, I need to say that everything that I've done up until this point wasn't me," Triss stated. "What the fuck do you mean? You wanted to keep me as your fucking sex slave! You know how much I want to slit your throat right now?", I asked. "I know exactly how you feel, Notarin. What 'I' did was horrible. But that wasn't me, it was the influence of what is known as the 'Undershroud'. In turn for increased power, it corrupted me. It made me hunt after you mercilessly and drew out the worst aspects of my personality. It left a part of my consciousness there, so I had to suffer as I did things I would never do. I'm sorry. For all the things I've done to you. There's no way I can ever make up for what I've done, except to tell you everything I know and die. I'm on limited time now", said Triss.

We all paused to take in what had just occurred. This woman was being controlled by what she thought was the Undershroud and what she did to me was against her own will. "I forgive you, Triss. I now know that wasn't you. I'm sorry that I put you in a state like this", I told Triss. "It's ok. There was no other way you could stop me. Anyways, I need to tell you about where those Undershroud fuckers are. There's a farm outside the city. At least, it appears to be a farm. In truth, it holds a dark secret. It acts as the gate to the Agents' hideout. Go to a little brothel known as 'Crippled Kate's'. Around noon, there should always be a man there who wears clothes that could be described as 'out of this world'. Once you see him, say 'Show me the gates of opportunity left undiscovered'. He'll then show you the way to the farm", Triss instructed.

Wait. A farm?

It couldn't be. It had to be a different one than the one I visited at the beginning of my journey. There's no possible way it could be the same farm. "Thanks, Triss. I wish I could do more for you now," I said. Triss began to cough up blood and was struggling to form sentences. "Once the Undershroud… took control… my life… was over. I wish… I could've… died with more dignity than this. I'm sorry… Notarin. I'm sorry… Ciri. I'm sorry… Dandelion. And Geralt… even though you chose to be with her instead of me, I'm sorry. This can't be my end… It can't… No… way…", Triss said with her last gasps of breath.

It quickly became apparent that her body was lifeless. I could see tears begin to form in Geralt's eyes. Dandelion's frightened face was beginning to tear up as well. "What kind of mess have you gotten yourselves into this time? This is beyond fucked up! I want no part of this! I just want to live a quiet life with Priscilla and manage my tavern! Yennefer, and now Triss? Fuck!", Dandelion shouted in distress. Geralt walked over to Triss's body and closed her dead eyelids. "When they killed my Yennefer, that was already a step too far for them. What they did to Triss made it sure that they will suffer more than just the pain of death", Geralt said.

Evening was already approaching, so we wouldn't make it to Crippled Kate's in time to meet the man today. We were going to have to stay some place for the night. "Dandelion, I know you want no part in this, but could you let us stay at your place for the night?", I asked. Dandelion paused in silence and wiped the tears off his face before he responded. "Sorry, I can't. I usually want to help friends in need, but this time is too much for me. It might put Priscilla in danger again, and I almost lost her once. Please, I hope you can understand", Dandelion informed. "Let's leave Dandelion alone, Notarin", Geralt said in an irritated voice. "Alright, let's get going then", I responded.

At that moment I noticed that I still hadn't put my clothes back on. Geralt was giving me an intense glare of what almost seemed to be hatred. It wasn't long until he opened his mouth again. "Notarin, I can still see your dick".


	14. Chapter 14

My clothes were finally back on. I could go around in public again without embarrassment or the guards' attention. However, I did wrap some cloth around my face to make sure no one could recognize me, just in case. We started looking for an inn to stay at, since Dandelion refused to keep us for the night. As we were walking, Geralt seemed lost deep in thought. I can't say that I'm surprised that he wouldn't be too talkative after all the events that have occurred.

"Notarin, I'm starting to think that you're not a Witcher. You're much more", Geralt stated. "What? What do you mean? I might have some weird superpowers, but I can't see how I couldn't be a Witcher", I replied. Geralt let out a groan of disappointment before he elaborated. "Don't play dumb, Notarin. We all know that Witchers can't fucking fly like you can. You may have the appearance of a Witcher, but to call you a Witcher would just be completely inaccurate to describe you".

Ciri looked like she was experiencing discomfort from this discussion. It was enough discomfort that she wanted the topic to change. "Geralt, please! Our current situation is making us all uneasy, I know! But we know Notarin isn't a bad guy and we have every reason to trust him, even if he isn't a Witcher. Let's just get to the inn and rest, ok?", Ciri requested. Geralt nodded his head horizontally and responded. "No. You two will go to the inn and rest, but I cannot. I will not be able to sleep at all. I must investigate any lead I have. We can't keep this situation waiting any longer, or the agents will be one step ahead of us, if they're not already. I'll meet you at the Crippled Kate's at eleven a.m. tomorrow", Geralt said.

I couldn't argue with his reasoning, so I concluded that it would be best to just let him go off on his own for the night, if only just to clear his head a bit. "Let's just let him go, Ciri. We'll relax by ourselves for the night", I said. Ciri reluctantly nodded in agreement with me. However, it seemed that something was deeply bothering her, as if she were worried if something was going to happen to Geralt.

Ciri and I eventually found ourselves at a small and inexpensive inn that would fit our needs. As soon as we entered the lobby, we requested a room for two and headed up the stairs. We both realized that we hadn't spent time alone together like this for a while, and that we had missed at least one night's sleep. We crashed into the bed the instant we got in our room. Everything seemed so weirdly peaceful for once after all this chaos.

"Hey, still got some of that herb I got from Conrad back at the cave. Want to smoke a bit and relax?", I asked Ciri. "Fine, we need to calm our nerves a bit after all that's happened anyways", Ciri responded.

I rolled up a joint for us both to enjoy. Soon, the room was full of smoke and it was honestly getting a bit hard to breathe. "How are you feeling?", I asked. Ciri chuckled a bit and responded. "I feel pretty good, man. Although, it's getting a bit difficult to breathe. Think you could maybe open a window or something?", Ciri asked. "Sure! So what if some people outside breathe in our smoke, worst that will happen is that they feel a little better", I said.

It wasn't too long before we were both high off our asses, acting like nothing was wrong. I introduced her to the game known in my world as "Rock, Paper, Scissors". I explained the rules to her, but it was hard to keep her attention while she was high. "So, does paper beat scissors by asserting its dominance and wrapping itself around the scissors, preventing the scissors from moving?", Ciri asked. "No, that's not how it works at all, dumb poo poo brain. Scissors just cuts paper and paper is dead as those Agents I killed", I responded. It took a while, but Ciri eventually got the idea.

The first round began, and I won by smashing her scissors with my rock. "Oh, come on! Is there a penalty for losing?", Ciri asked. "I guess if we're playing 'Strip' Rock, Paper, Scissors, there could be", I responded.

"What do you mean by that? You want me to take off an article of clothing?"

"Yes".

Ciri blushed and removed her pants, revealing her underwear. "Is this… ok?", Ciri asked. "Yes, it is very much ok", I said flirtatiously. Ciri looked at me with intent, and it was clear she was driven to beat me next round. "I'll get you this time, Notarin!"

It was time for the second round, but despite Ciri's desperate intent to defeat me, she once again lost. "Damn it! Guess I'll have to take my top off next", Ciri said. Ciri was now just in her underwear and almost everything was visible to me now. At this rate, I knew this activity would devolve into something quite naughty.

Several rounds passed and while Ciri became naked first, she managed to beat me a couple of times. However, it wouldn't take a game such as Rock, Paper, Scissors to get me to remove anything I had on still. Before we both knew it, we were mating like bunnies and we continued doing this until exhaustion hit us both. To be fair, our coughing fits from the weed smoke made our stamina a bit weaker than usual, but things were pretty damn lively when we were going at it.

After we ceased our sexual activity, we both laid on our backs and looked at the ceiling while panting heavily from the exhaustion. We both chuckled a bit, but it became apparent to me that something seemed off about Ciri. I could notice tears begin to roll down her cheeks when I looked over at her.

"Notarin, about that 'Asaho' girl. If we find her, will you leave me? I wouldn't blame you, but it hurts", asked Ciri. "I can't deny the fact that I love Asaho, and there's a part of me that will always love her no matter what. However, I love you just as much, Ciri, and I can't bring myself to just abandon you either", I responded. "I see. I would be… willing… to 'share' you with her, as long as you don't abandon me", Ciri said. "Are you sure? I'll admit that I don't want to make a choice between you two, but I can't imagine it would be easy for you or Asaho", I asked. "It's fine. Let's just focus on defeating the Agents and saving Asaho for now, ok?", Ciri responded. I nodded in agreement, and then we both eventually fell asleep.

When we awoke, the sun outside our window seemed stronger than we were expecting. "Oh no! I think we slept in more than planned due to our activities last night! If we don't hurry, we might be late to meet Geralt!", Ciri shouted. I responded by immediately getting dressed and gathering my belongings. We both dashed out of the inn and jogged towards Crippled Kate's. "Geralt is so going to chastise us if he gets there before us!", Ciri stated. We picked up our speed a bit more and quickly found ourselves at Crippled Kate's.

Geralt was nowhere to be seen.

"Let's wait a bit. We were in a rush, so it's expected that we're here a bit earlier than him", Ciri said. I nodded in agreement and we stood there waiting for a good while. Each minute felt like an eternity, but eventually it was obvious that an hour had passed and there was no sign of Geralt.

"What if something happened to him? I'm really starting to get worried.", Ciri stated. "Same here. Although, we can't wait around too much longer. We'll just have to do this without him. We have no time to spare", I responded.

Ciri reluctantly agreed with me, and we made our way inside the brothel. There was still no sign of Geralt inside the Brothel, but I could see a mysterious figure in a chair off in the distance. The clothing this figure was wearing was quite familiar to me. The person seemed to be wearing a modern hoodie from my world, as well as modern jeans. To anyone from this world, the clothing would seem quite 'out of this world'.

That's it.

This was the man that Triss Merigold told us to see.


	15. Chapter 15

This seemed to be one of the busier hours for Crippled Kate's. There were almost no seats available for us to sit in, except for the seats by the mysterious figure. There was no time to waste. I grabbed Ciri's hand and we walked straight towards this figure and sat down.

"Show me the gates of opportunity left undiscovered", I said to the figure. The figure took off their hood to reveal their face. They were a man; one that seemed to be around my age. He gave us both an intense glare before he began to talk.

"I've been expecting you. We fully expected that witch bitch to betray us and rat us out, which is fine. You finally want answers, right? Follow me if you want to find out everything you wanted to know. I know you're desperate", the man said. I bit my lip in frustration as I tried to think of a way to respond to him. "How can I trust that you haven't planned anything? Last time I followed someone, I almost ended up as their sex slave".

The man chuckled when he heard my question. "Haha, I'm the only lead you know of. Even if I had something planned, do you really think you're going to say no to me? You want to walk right into the lair of us Agents at this point, so this is a gift to us. We knew you would see things our way eventually. You're not thinking of doing anything yourself, right? Ha! As if you could. We all know you have powers, but you will stand no fucking chance against the strongest of our guild. You've given yourself away now, so you might as well just come with me", the man informed.

I could feel a deep frown form on my face in reaction to what he said, but I couldn't deny he was right. However, I knew I had it in me to take on those strong guild members he was talking about. I wanted to punch him in the face for underestimating me. These agents think they're all high and mighty, which makes me want to put them in their place even more.

"Fine, I'll follow you. However, I swear, if you pull any tricks, you'll feel the cold kiss of my blade across your neck", I said. The man laughed in response and got up from his seat. It seemed as if he wasn't going to wait for us, since he was already near the door. Ciri and I quickly got up from our chairs and dashed towards him. We were back in the streets of Novigrad, with only a vague idea of what was in store for us.

"So, do you have a name? Kind of annoys me how many of you Agents like to act mysterious and shit", I asked the man.

"My name is not important. In fact, it is meaningless in this world. Back In my world, I used to have everything. I was the number one champion in all battle royale games. No one comes close to my skills in my world's most popular battle royale game, Tetris 99. I had anything I could have ever wanted: Money, mansions, e-girls, the best vape juice, and most importantly, my pet turtle named Kyle. I had it all, now it's gone, and I mean nothing here", the man responded.

I interrupted him by asking a question. "Wait, so you're telling me that Tetris 99 is the most popular battle royale game in your world? It isn't Fortnite?", I asked.

"Fortnite? That's seriously the most popular battle royale game in your world? It's fucking trash, dude. I forgot about that shit after a month. Anyways, once I was summoned here, I stuck out like a sore thumb, since I was transported here with my clothes intact. The agents found me very quickly, in hopes that I was the Undershroud's chosen. It turned out that I lacked the proper markings of being the chosen as well as there being no magical potential in me. They were kind enough to employ me and give me more comfortable living conditions, but ultimately, I mean nothing here. I'm no champion, no girls want me, and my turtle is not with me. This world is so much shittier than what I had. I have no desire to mean anything in it. I just don't wish to die pathetically by disease or something like that. At least with the Agents, I may be able to experience an epic death. That's why my name means nothing. I'm jealous of you, honestly. You are clearly the Undershroud's chosen and have access to so much power because of that. You mean something here. If I had the power to kill you I would", the man explained.

As we continued following the man through the alleys of Novigrad, Ciri turned to me, looking concerned. "Notarin, I'm scared. We have no idea where Geralt is, and we're on our way to face what is most likely the toughest battle yet. Is it really worth it to hunt after these bastards anymore? Can't we just run and hide? I can't take this anymore", Ciri whispered. I walked in silence for a bit, thinking of a way to respond to Ciri.

"Boys, they are all yours!", the man shouted.

"What? Who are you talking to?", I asked.

I could hear the man laughing, as if we were just tricked by him or something. I suddenly felt a force hit me against the head and could feel my consciousness fading as I tumbled to the ground.

I woke up to find myself chained up in a rusty prison cell. It felt as if all the power I had before was no longer there. Ciri was chained up beside me, still unconscious. In the cell across from me, I could see a very familiar figure chained up as well.

"Notarin? Are you awake? It's me! Hey Notarin! Don't you recognize me?", the person in the cell across from me said.

I was still in a bit of daze, but when I was able to gather my strength a bit, my vision became clearer. "Hikuminmai Asaho… is that really you? Asaho-chan! It's really you! I can't believe it! I'm so sorry that these Undershroud bastards captured you!", I responded.

"Notarin! I'm so happy to see you, but I wish it was under different circumstances. I hear footsteps! He's coming!", Asaho said.

She was right. Footsteps could be heard inching closer and closer to our cells. I had no clue what these agent fuckers had in mind for me. This situation was honestly more terrifying than the time Triss had captured me. It wasn't long until I could see the source of these footsteps, and my heart sank as soon as I recognized who it was. It was that man who tricked us earlier.

"Hello, Mr. Chosen. I see you look a lot rougher than you did earlier. It probably would have been wise of you not to listen to me back at Crippled Kate's, but of course you are a fool. Those chains and cuffs that restrain you also restrain any of your magic. It's quite funny to see someone so powerful such as you looking pathetic as you are now. My group was supposed to bring you to the boss, but I've managed to keep you in this rotting prison cell for now, because I think I have a better idea for you", the man said.

I could feel anger boil inside me, making my face go red. "God damn you! You've kept poor Asaho-chan trapped in here this whole time! Why is she even in this world? I swear, you'll pay dearly for this!", I shouted.

"Hahahaha! Look at you! You can do nothing, and yet you'll think I'll 'pay dearly'? Dream on! The reason why Asaho exists here is to make you suffer. Making her suffer causes you great pain, I'm sure. If you suffer great pain, your synchronization with the Undershroud will grow more. In all honesty, I just want to see you dead. I want you to suffer, but not as much as the boss does. Look at it this way, I'm doing you a service by killing you. I want you dead, because you are the main reason why my life was taken from me. If it wasn't for your existence, I could be happily wrecking noobs in Tetris 99 and Apex Legends while petting my beloved Kyle! Fuck you! I'm going to enjoy this and do this slowly", the man said menacingly.

I felt hopeless as the man opened the doors of my prison cell. He pulled out a knife and walked closer and closer towards me. "Don't do it! Don't kill Notarin! I love him!", Asaho yelled. I could see that Ciri had started to wake up from all this noise. "What? You're the man who we followed. Hey! Why am I chained up? Don't you hurt Notarin, you bastard!", Ciri said.

"Haha, don't worry, it won't take _too _long", the man said. I started to tear up in fear that I might actually die.

"At the very least, can you promise not to hurt Ciri and Asaho if you kill me? Can you please let them go? They did nothing to hurt you!", I pleaded. I could feel the man drag his knife along my arm, making me bleed a little bit.

"I can't promise anything. But I will say, it's quite satisfying to see you in fear as you bleed. I was supposed to be weak in this world, but right now I feel more powerful than ever", the man said.

I couldn't die here. However, things were looking bleaker as every second passed. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it through this time.


	16. Chapter 16

The man in front of me was licking his lips as his knife drew blood from me. I could see in his eyes that he was starving for my blood. He cackled in delight as he saw the look of fear on my face. I, who was supposedly the "Undershroud's chosen", was in a weak and pathetic state now, and this man was going to enjoy every second of that.

"The boss keeps going on and on about how unfair this world is, and I agree. However, how we see the issue differs completely. He thinks the only way to cure this unfairness is to make this world unfair for everyone. I, on the other hand, believe in true justice. We either have fairness or we don't. The Undershroud is disgusting. It is the epitome of injustice and unfairness, and that means I have to destroy it, starting with you", the man said.

"Fuck… you!", I responded.

He laughed and drew his knife toward me again with a murderous intent. I closed my eyes and braced for the worst. However, the worst would not come. I opened my eyes to see a very surprising sight in front of me.

"H-hhh-huh?", the man asked in a puzzled tone as I saw a blade pierce through his chest.

The man toppled and hit the ground right in front of me. In that moment, I felt as if my power was returning to me. I was relieved to see a very familiar figure standing in front of me.

"Geralt? Where in the world have you been?", I asked.

"Notarin, we need to get out of here now. I'll explain when we're somewhere safe. We don't know how much time we have. Let's free Ciri and get out of here!", Geralt demanded.

"Alright, but I gotta get Asaho-chan out of here too! She's from my world, Geralt!", I responded.

Geralt nodded in response. The chains that were supposed to restrain me broke off easily, although it certainly didn't feel that way before. Maybe it wasn't the chains restraining me, but something else entirely. I noticed that the man Geralt had stabbed was still breathing but had fainted due to either shock or blood loss.

"Should we kill him?", Geralt asked.

"No, I sorta feel bad for the guy. He had every right to be angry, but his anger was misguided. All he wanted to do was to play Tetris 99 and pet his turtle named Kyle. I don't think he's an entirely bad guy", I responded.

We unchained the two girls I loved and left the old prison as quickly as possible. It didn't seem like it was heavily guarded at the moment, so escape was easy. It became apparent that this area was not the headquarters for the agents, which was slightly disappointing. When we reached the exit, the sun was glaring in our eyes, and I could faintly see the buildings of Novigrad in the distance.

"We're not going back there. Too dangerous right now", Geralt said.

He was right. Novigrad had to be flooded with agents after me, and we had to find a place where I wouldn't get caught right away. We moved in a direction opposite of Novigrad, making sure to stay off the beaten path, just in case any agents were patrolling the roads.

"Do you know where we are going?", I asked Geralt. "I have a compass with me just to make sure we don't get lost. We are headed towards the city of Oxenfurt for now. I guess I owe you all an explanation", Geralt responded.

"I'm obviously completely out of the loop", Asaho said.

Geralt sighed and then began his explanation. "Well, I'll give you a quick rundown. Your special friend here has displayed that he has some abnormal abilities in this world. A powerful group is hunting us down so they can get him. It's the same group that was holding you captive. We were told by an old friend of mine to seek a certain person out that would bring us to this group. I knew that if we all went together, that could possibly compromise us all, so I couldn't let that happen. To make sure my plan would succeed, I made sure to keep it a secret to both Ciri and Notarin".

"What? Why would you keep a secret from me Geralt?", Ciri asked in shock.

"I meant to keep it a secret from you both for your safety. If you knew what the plan was, your chance of blowing my cover by accident would be much higher. After you spent the night at the inn, I made sure to keep my eyes on you both by the time you got to Crippled Kate's", Geralt responded.

Asaho seemed to be troubled by what Geralt just said. "You mean… Notarin… slept with another girl?", asked Asaho as she interrupted Geralt's explanation. Tears began to form on her face.

Geralt looked frustrated by this development. "Damn it! It's your responsibility to deal with this issue, Notarin. I want nothing to do with this. Just make sure Ciri doesn't suffer, or you will suffer. That is all. Anyways, as I was saying, I was following you while you two were following that man. There were too many agents for me to take on when you were kidnapped, so my only choice was to follow those agents and see where they were taking you. I got my chance to rescue you when the agents left to report to the boss that you were captured. That man stayed behind and was willing to sacrifice his life if it meant he got to kill you. I could tell there was a determination in him that was unusual. Anyways, you know how the rest of this played out, so there you have it", Geralt finished explaining.

Asaho was now sobbing a waterfall as she continued to ponder the horrible fact that another woman had taken her beloved's heart. "I can't believe this! I can't take this!", Asaho yelled as she ran off in an unspecified direction.

"Sorry you two, I gotta go take care of this. See you in a bit", I said to Geralt and Ciri.

I ran off in pursuit of Asaho. I had to ensure that she didn't become the victim of any more heinous crimes. She was weak and vulnerable in this world, and it was my duty to protect her.

"Asaho! Please! Hear me out! I don't want anything to happen to you! This world is very dangerous, and you'll be much safer if you come with me!", I shouted.

Asaho stopped in her tracks as I continued running after her. She seemed completely still, as if she was about to break down or something. "Notarin, I… I… understand. You didn't think you would see me again, right?", Asaho asked.

"Right. I thought I would have to live a completely new life here", I replied. Asaho seemed to have ceased her weeping and regained her composure a bit.

"Notarin, I don't blame you if you don't love me anymore. That Ciri is quite something, I'll say. I think she'll be a better fit for you at this point anyways", Asaho explained.

"Whatever do you mean? I still love you, Asaho! It's true I love Ciri as well, and I don't think I can change that at this point, but I'm willing to make time for you too if you're comfortable with that. I really don't want to lose you Asaho, now that you're here!", I responded.

"Sweetheart, I'd love that, but something about me changed when I got to this world", Asaho said.

"What? Do you not love me anymore or something? What is it?", I asked. Asaho started to tear up again and I braced for her incoming response.

"It's not because I don't love you anymore. It's not that at all. Notarin, I… I… don't know how to say this, but my body physically changed. It's like how you changed when you came to this world, but not nearly as good of a change. It's more of a curse, I'd say. I don't know if I can be considered a girl by any normal means anymore. I have a penis, Notarin. Some agents would visit my cell and play around with me without my consent. I'm not the girl you know anymore, Notarin. I feel like I've been dirtied and I'm too pathetic of a person to accept your love", Asaho explained.

"Asaho, don't say things like that. I'll make sure those bastards pay for what they did to you. I don't care if you have a penis, you're still my beloved Asaho to me. I'll still make love to you and comfort you when you want, ok? I'll make sure you still feel like a woman, and only I will ever have to know. Please Asaho, I love you", I responded.

Asaho began forming buckets of tears once again, but this time they were of relief. We embraced in a tight hug, vowing to stay together no matter the challenges ahead of us. After our tender moment of silence together, I suggested that we head back to the group. Asaho agreed and we made our way back where we came from.

"That took long enough", Geralt said with frown on his face.

"I'm going back to Novigrad. I'm not going to run away from these Undershroud fucks. Those bastards really need to pay for what they have done, and we're really close to them now, so I'm not going to let you take us off that path, Geralt", I said.

"No, Notarin. We're definitely going to Oxenfurt. You're not ready to take these agents on, especially if you can get tricked and almost killed by one without any powers. We have to go in hiding for now", Geralt responded.

"Fine, so be it. If you're not confident in my abilities, why don't we have a duel? I beat you last time, and I'm sure I'll beat you again. I promise not to use any of my powers, and the duel will be a fair and honest one. I've been weakened a bit by those chains back in the prison cell anyways even though my power is returning", I asked Geralt.

Geralt nodded in response and readied his sword. "Whoever can knock the other down first wins", Geralt said.

We both stared at each other with violent intent. This was more than just your average sparring match. In this moment, we both couldn't stand each other, and clashing swords was the only way to solve our differences. I calmed my senses as Geralt rushed towards me. I blocked his attack with my blade, but the force of his blade felt stronger than the last time I had a duel with him. I suddenly realized that this wasn't going to be an easy victory despite all the feats I had accomplished in this time. Was it my reduced power? It must be.

"Don't seem to be in peak condition, Notarin. Anything wrong?", Geralt said in a mocking tone.

I growled in response and swung my blade with great energy towards his blade. My strike caused Geralt to step back and almost lose his balance. It was clear that this wasn't entirely easy for him either.

"There was quite a bit of strength in that hit, but that better not be all you got", Geralt stated.

We traded blows for a while and built up a good sweat doing so. The duel seemed like it could go either way, until Geralt seemed to suddenly get the upper hand. I was being pushed back by his strikes, and it became clear that I could not keep this up very much longer. His next strike almost seemed to come with what seemed to be a killing intent. My survival instinct kicked in and I teleported to get away from his blade.

"I guess that ends the duel then. You broke the rules, so I win by default. If you can't even beat me in a fair duel, you definitely don't have what it takes to take on the agents, Notarin. You're quite frankly a mess right now, so we all should take some rest", Geralt said.

I so badly wanted to protest Geralt. I couldn't be this weak. After all this time, there's no way someone like me could lose to Geralt in a duel. However, Geralt didn't seem to be wrong. Since I lost the duel, I couldn't argue with him. I now had to go to Oxenfurt and hide for a while. Anything else was not an option for me now. After a brief pause, we all headed on our way towards the city where we would spend some considerable time away from the agents.


	17. Chapter 17

Six months had passed since I arrived in Oxenfurt. I've felt like a weaker being ever since my duel with Geralt. My powers don't come to me as naturally as they did anymore, and my sword is starting to feel heavy in my hand. Could those magic-restraining chains have had a lasting impact on me? I had no idea why I was losing all the power I had before. Every day I seemed to be getting close to who I originally was back in my world.

I've been spending my life here disguised as a university student attending Oxenfurt Academy at Geralt's request that I do so. My eyes make me stick out a bit for sure, but so far, I've been able to lay low. I have no clue where Geralt is now, but he said that he left to go and research more about the Agents. However, Ciri and Asaho have stayed behind to live with me.

I would be lying if I said that my current life wasn't a nice change of pace from all the action I had been experiencing. It reminded me of my peaceful life back in my world, minus the video games. I can spend my time being a student and living with the two people I love the most. If this is what losing some of my power cost, I'm pretty sure it was worth it.

Like most mornings now, I woke up with Ciri and Asaho at my side. Waking up to them both never ceased to put a smile on my face. I sat up and got off the bed while they continued to rest. I probably should have woken them up, but I didn't want to disturb them when they seemed so peaceful.

In a way, I was happy to be a student once again. After all this adventure, I noticed that I have missed the simple pleasures in life. I could sit down and eat breakfast in peace, without having to worry about the struggle of fighting Undershroud agents. I could just go to school again and live a life without violence.

I could hear Asaho and Ciri getting up and getting ready to leave the bedroom. The door opened and they still had their sleepwear on. "Good morning you two! You're both looking lovely today!", I greeted.

"Why didn't you wake us up, dear? It's kind of mean to let us rot away in bed! We could be late for school!", Ciri scolded.

"Sorry Ciri, I just saw your peaceful faces, and I felt bad if I woke you two up. You both look so pretty when you're resting", I responded.

I could see both Ciri's and Asaho's face flush bright red in reaction to what I said. Ciri let out a sigh and proceeded to get her breakfast in silence. She was so silent that I was starting to get concerned if something was wrong with her.

"Ciri, are you feeling ok? I'm sorry about this morning, but it seems like there's something you are not telling me", I asked.

"I am feeling fine, dear. Let's finish eating breakfast and get to today's classes, ok?", Ciri responded.

We all ate the rest of our breakfast quickly and finished getting ready to go to some lectures. We all walked to the university together, and while Asaho was enthusiastically talking about mundane things such as the weather to me, Ciri was completely silent. I didn't want to make the situation more awkward, but I knew something was not right with her.

"Ciri, can we talk?", I asked.

"Later, Notarin. We don't have time right now. Meet me after today's first lecture and we'll have a chat, ok?", Ciri requested.

I nodded in response and then Ciri went off to go to her lecture. Asaho and I shared the day's first lecture together, so we walked together the rest of the way.

"Notarin-kun, Ciri-chan seemed very troubled today. Are you sure everything is going to be ok? I don't want unhappiness to strike us now that we've found peace", Asaho said in concern.

"I don't know, my love, but I'm sure she's just in a bad mood today. That's all. I don't think anything bad is going to happen. Let's just go to our lecture and just trust things will be fine, ok?", I responded.

Asaho nodded and we finished making our way to the lecture theatre. Today we would be learning about herbs and how to use them in alchemy. This was exciting since I definitely loved herbs. I couldn't wait to discover new and exciting ways to smoke a bowl. The professor unfortunately didn't include marijuana in his teaching of herbs, so I would have to get creative with what I learned from class and experiment.

The lecture ended and I didn't end up learning much new, disappointingly. I had no time to complain about that though, since I had to meet up with Ciri right away. Hopefully we could have a nice chat and just forget about this morning.

I made my way to one of the University's courtyards; a common meeting place for us all. I could see Ciri in the distance sitting on a bench with an anxious look on her face. I made a mad dash towards her so I didn't keep her waiting any longer.

"You're a minute late, dear. What took you this long?", Ciri asked.

"Sorry, the lecture went a bit overtime. To make it even worse, it was pretty boring, haha!", I responded with a nervous laugh.

"Look Notarin, I've got to be blunt with you. I'm thinking of leaving for now", Ciri said.

I could feel blood rush through my body in shock. I thought everything was going so well until now. I couldn't jump to conclusions, but the anxiety started to build within me. She might have a perfectly acceptable reason for wanting to do this.

"Do you not love me anymore, Ciri? Please don't tell me that you don't love me anymore", I pleaded as I fought back the tears forming in my eyes.

"Notarin, I do still love you, but things are really complicated now. We haven't heard back from Geralt in a while, and I'm honestly starting to get tired of living in hiding. I'm getting worried about him, and I just want to know if he's ok. Also, to be honest, the stress of living with your other lover is starting to get to me. I can't take the pressure for much longer. I just need a bit of a break, ok? We'll see each other again after I find Geralt", Ciri explained.

I was saddened by her words, yet I had no argument to provide. I didn't want her to leave after all this happy time we spent together, but knowing I would see her again meant I could probably go on with life as usual.

"Ok, Ciri. I'm not happy about this, but I understand. I'll let you go. However, I just want to ask you a question. Do you really think the Agents of the Undershroud are worth fighting against anymore? Before we got captured that one time, you asked me whether the fight was worth it or not. I've been thinking more about it, and I'm starting to feel content with the life I have now. We haven't seen them in a long while, so it might be worth forgetting about them", I said.

"What the fuck? Do you not understand how much of a threat to the world they are, Notarin? I know I said that one time, but that was mostly out of fear! They have unimaginable powers that far exceed what is commonly known, and they use it for pure evil! They kill innocents, rape, slaughter villages, corrupt fine people such as Triss, all so they can strengthen their damn 'Undershroud'! If we don't stop them, who will? Get yourself together, Notarin! You better be ready to take them on by the time I see you again!", Ciri shouted.

She got up and stomped away in what seemed to be an angry fit. I held my face in my hands as tears began to flow down my cheeks. I never cried like this in the longest time. However, I would soon forget about the reason why I was crying.

"What was her name again?", I asked myself.

I was struggling to remember the name of my lover I had just quarreled with. I could remember Asaho just fine but trying to remember the other lover was becoming difficult. I felt a deep sadness throughout me, as if my glory days were finally coming to an end. However, throughout the day, my emotions would stabilize and my memories of the woman I quarreled with earlier began to fade more and more. I knew I was supposed to love her, but why did I love her?

Everything started to feel normal again by the end of today's lectures. I met up with Asaho in the courtyard to walk home together, but then she said something that immediately confused me.

"Hey Notarin-kun! Where's Ciri? Isn't she coming home with us?", Asaho asked.

Was Ciri the name of the woman I had quarreled with earlier? It must have been. I know something was going wonky with my memory, but I had to think of a casual way to respond to her.

"C-cc-ciri? She said she went off to go in search of someone. She seemed concerned", I responded.

I couldn't even remember the name of the man that the woman was in search of. I could definitely remember his face, but his name escaped me for whatever reason. What was happening to me? This was getting really weird.

"Did she go in search of… what's his name? Weird, I'm forgetting his name even though it should be obvious to me", Asaho said.

It was clear that whatever was affecting me was affecting Asaho as well. We were both struggling to retain our memories of these people. After this confusion, we decided it was best to head back home and have some dinner. There was already a bright orange sunset, so we needed to hurry before the streets were covered in darkness.

We got home and ate a nice dinner with pleasant conversation. It was almost like nothing had happened earlier. I knew I had forgotten something, but it was starting to bother me less.

"Hey, doesn't this just feel like it was back in our world? Now that I mention that, do you even remember how you got here? I'm starting to forget how I got here, but at least I still know that I should be here", I said to Asaho.

"I guess you're right. Even if we are no longer going to school together in Japan, it doesn't feel like much has changed. Besides being in a different world, the only thing that's seemed to change is for the better", Asaho responded.

"What do you mean by that?", I asked.

"I get to spend my life with you here. We get to sleep in the same bed, eat the same meals, and I couldn't be more happy about it! Life can be practically perfect with you around, Notarin-kun!", Asaho explained.

I could feel my face start to turn bright red at her statement. She was right. I didn't care where we were; if I could spend my days with her, my life would never feel like a waste. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that my life was completely different just yesterday, although it felt like it had just been her and me here the whole time.

"Notarin-kun, I'm feeling very good right now. I want to feel you in my bum hole tonight, ok?", Asaho requested.

"I mean, the only other hole is your mouth, so the options are limited, haha", I replied.

Asaho looked frustrated by what I just said. Almost as if she were a bit angry or something. I realized what I said, and in that moment, I understood that she probably was offended. However, what confused me is that I said she only had two holes. Where did that come from? Of course, she has a third hole, she's a girl after all! Was it some weird memory I had?

"Notarin-kun, you're mean! I have three holes, you dummy! And you know that all too well!", Asaho shouted.

"Sorry, Asaho-chan, I don't know why I said what I said. I think it's some weird memory I had or something. Of course you have three beautiful holes! They're the most beautiful holes in the world!", I responded.

After we finished eating, we went directly to the bedroom. I did exactly as she requested earlier, and we both had a great night together. After I finished my business inside her bum hole, we both turned to look each other in the eyes.

"I love you, Notarin-kun!"

"I love you too, Asaho-chan".


	18. Chapter 18

It was yet another morning, and another day I had to go to school. Life was feeling monotonous, but it's probably the best I could ask for in a different world. I was lucky to be going to a nice school in such an unforgiving world anyways. Seeing the beggars line the streets every day and seeing people die of disease; it was all a little too much for me. I wish there was some way I could help them all, but I am weak and powerless here. I had no clue what true suffering was until I came here.

Having Asaho by my side made my existence here much easier than it would be without her. In this world full of unhappiness and despair, her smile kept me going every day. If it wasn't for her, I don't know how long I would last. I would be living in isolation, losing my sanity day by day. I made sure to cherish every small moment with her, because every single one could be the last in a world as dangerous as this.

How did I end up going to school here anyways? This I cannot remember. All I know is that I'm incredibly lucky to be in the situation I am now, and I'm not about to ask questions yet.

It was time to get out of bed and get ready for the day ahead of me. Asaho said that she was feeling unwell and asked me to go to school without her for the day. I urged that I stay behind to keep an eye on her despite there being a big exam today, but she insisted that my grades shouldn't suffer because of her. I reluctantly made my way to school for the day, leaving Asaho all alone in our apartment.

Even though I know that I studied a lot for the upcoming exam, I was still very concerned about my performance in it. It felt as if my knowledge about this world was dwindling every day. The world that I spent so much time studying was starting to feel alien to me, and there was seemingly nothing I could do about it. That's why I would rather spend my time looking after Asaho.

I made my way to the exam hall, and anxiously awaited my test. I knew that this might turn out ugly for me, but I could only hope for the best. After what felt like an hour, my test was finally in front of me. When we were allowed to begin, I flipped the page and I could feel my heart sink. Nothing on the page seemed to make sense to me anymore, even though it should. I answered every question to the best of my abilities, but I eventually found myself skipping them to save time.

After I finished, I wouldn't even need to see my mark. I knew I failed. I knew it was the wrong choice to leave Asaho behind at the apartment. How did I become so incompetent at school? Was I not studying enough? Was I just dumb? I had no idea what was going on with me. I handed my test in and rushed back home to see Asaho.

When I got home, the apartment was dead silent. There was no greeting to be heard from Asaho. I decided it was best to check the bedroom. I opened the door and saw that she was still in bed, sleeping. I slowly approached her and gently woke her up with a slight touch on the shoulder.

"Asaho-chan! Wake up, please! I'm back", I said.

I could see her gorgeous green eyes begin to open and look at me.

"Notarin-kun, I'm glad to see you here. I need to rest more though. Also, I'd hate to give you this illness that I have now", Asaho responded.

"I just want to know that you're alright, Asaho-chan. I don't care about getting the illness, I just want to be here for you", I said.

"If you get the illness, how can you take care of me? I thought it was just a common cold earlier today, but I'm feeling noticeably worse now. I have no energy to get out of bed. My body needs to constantly recharge now. I'm starting to get afraid that I'll fall asleep and never wake up again, but as long as you're here with me, I'm not afraid, Notarin-kun.", Asaho explained.

"We need to get help! I can't lose you, Asaho-chan! If I'm being honest, you're the only reason I can go on in this world. The amount of suffering in this world I see on a daily basis is already too much, but I just can't bear to see you like this! I'm going to do everything in my power to get you feeling well again!", I exclaimed.

Asaho let out a weak smile and responded. "Notarin-kun, don't be so silly. We're not in our world anymore. Medicine is nowhere near as advanced here. I'll just have to hope I can recover from this naturally. Otherwise there's no hope for me, unless…", Asaho paused.

"'Unless' what? If there's anything I can do to help you, I need to know! Please, Asaho! We're going to live and die together, ok? I'll have it no other way! Just tell me!", I urged.

"It's just a silly little rumor being passed around by the medical students at the Academy, but there's talk of a man who blesses the weak, sick and poor, changing their lives for the better. If he were to perhaps exist, maybe he could help me out. I have no clue where he is, though. Please, don't waste much time on foolish nonsense such as that. It's highly likely that this man doesn't exist", Asaho explained.

Even if this man was only an urban legend, I had to seek him out by any means necessary. My only lead were these medical students that Asaho had mentioned of. I would have to wait until tomorrow to talk to them. I didn't want to leave Asaho behind just yet anyways. It would be dumb to waste my time aimlessly searching for a lead right now instead of making the most of my time with Asaho.

Morning came, and Asaho was still asleep. As much as I hated doing it, I made sure to sleep on the floor last night to stay healthy so I could help her. I didn't waste any time making my way to school today, but I had no plans to attend classes. I had to go and visit some medical students and inquire about this rumor that Asaho spoke of.

I managed to stumble across a group of students that were dressed up like nurses. I wasted no time in approaching them and asking them my question bluntly.

"Hey there! I've heard some talk of a man that can bless the unfortunate. Is there any truth to this rumor?", I asked.

The students looked confused by what I had asked, but one woman stood out from the crowd. She gave me a glare and approached me.

"Come with me. We cannot discuss this here", she said quietly.

I followed her as she made her way through campus, leading me to some old-looking stairs that led downwards. It looked dark and kind of creepy, but it seemed as if I had no other option if I wanted to find answers.

"This way please", the woman said as she made her way down the steps.

Walking down these steps seemed to take forever. I didn't even hear a peep from her this whole time, that is until she suddenly came to a stop.

"Before we go further, I must ask you a question. How in the world have you heard anything about this man? I do not recognize you, so I do not trust you. I apologize if I come across as rude, but you must understand", the woman asked.

"My partner has fell quite ill, and I want nothing more to see her get better. I don't think normal medical practices can help her at this point. I need something more effective. She spoke of some rumor among the medical students of this man, and I had to investigate and see if there was any truth to it", I explained.

The woman looked at me with a bit of frustration, but she was quick to follow up on what I said. "What is the name of your partner? I must know", the woman asked.

"Her name is Asaho. Hikuminmai Asaho. She means the world to me", I answered.

The woman's face lit up with shock.

"I think… I know who you are. If that is your partner, you must be Notarin! The man you are looking for has been keeping an eye out for you. You were supposed to have the eyes of a cat though. No matter, I'm confident that you are the right man. Follow me the rest of the way down! It won't be long!", she explained.

I had no clue what she was referring to when talking about cat eyes. I can only imagine that those would look weird on me. Why would anyone be looking for me in the first place? I'm so insignificant, besides the fact that I come from a different world. I don't have many skills I can apply here though, so I don't see what could make me special.

"The man you are about to see changed my life and many others. Ever since he helped me, I've always felt as if I owed him some help. See, we need to be quite secretive of his activities. It's not because they're shady or anything, but he has special powers he can't let the public know about. It paints a red target on him for an organization that could potentially stop him. I search out the unfortunate citizens of this city and bring them here so he can bless them. We can't help everyone all at once, but he's getting stronger and stronger with his powers, and I believe he can change the world", the woman explained.

This sounded like quite the peculiar man indeed. Who could ever want to harm him though? He's only making the world a better place. I guess there's people awful enough out there that want to ruin any joy in this world. I was glad to know that this man was not just a myth though. Perhaps I would actually find a solution to Asaho's illness.

We soon found ourselves in a seemingly barren room with only torches lit. It looked as if this was just some empty basement storage room that was quite ordinary, but the woman proved me wrong pretty quickly. One of the torches appeared to act as a mechanism as she pulled down on it, revealing a moving wall.

When the wall was completely open, I could see a fully decorated room complete with a bed and a desk. A man wearing clothes that seemed to be from my world sat at this desk. He appeared to keep a pet turtle with him, which was sitting upon his desk. He looked at me with a smile, and it didn't take long for him to open his mouth.

"Hello, Notarin. Long time no see".


	19. Chapter 19

I was struggling to think of what words I should say in response to this man in front me. How could he possibly know me? I had a lingering feeling by looking in his eyes that I should remember who he was but trying to dig through my memory retrieved no results.

"How do you know me?", I asked.

The man looked a bit confused, as if I were missing something. He glared into my eyes, as if he were inspecting something.

"Hm, interesting. You're unmistakably him, yet you lack the eyes of a cat and I can also detect that you have very low levels of Undershroud influence within you. No wonder you do not know who I am. I suppose it is my own fault you are this way", the man responded.

"Huh? What are talking about? I have no clue as to what you mean", I asked.

"Apologies for not introducing myself properly. My name is Jose, and you've definitely met me before in the past, you just don't remember it. That is my fault. There was a point in time where I wanted nothing more than to kill you, but I was blind back then", Jose explained.

"What? You tried to… kill me? How should I trust you?", I interrupted.

"Listen to what I have to say please. Yes, I really did want you to die, but I was a much different person back then. See, you and I are fairly similar. We both come from a world other than this one, and we were brought here for a specific reason", the man continued.

"What would that be?", I asked.

"A group calling themselves the 'Agents of the Undershroud' have been seeking a vessel for the Undershroud to fully manifest. The Undershroud feeds on absolute chaos, so a person with high magic potential from another world would do the trick. The culture shock experienced by an otherworldly person can cause a surge in chaos, especially when high magic potential gets involved. Unfortunately, the agents can only repeatedly do rituals to summon new people, and not all of them will have the magic potential they are looking for", Jose elaborated.

"Well, clearly I don't think I have any magic potential. I've just been living with my girlfriend, who's now come down with a terrible illness. I heard you have powers that I definitely do not have. Are you in fact the Undershroud's vessel?", I asked.

"You're wrong, Notarin. You certainly possess a higher amount of magic potential than me, and you are supposed to be the Undershroud's vessel. Yet, you do not seem to remember anything about the time you truly were", Jose responded.

"What does that make you then?", I asked.

"See, there are commonly only two known types of shrouds in each world. I've already explained the Undershroud a bit, and the other one is known as the Overshroud. On the other hand, I happen to be the vessel for a fairly unique shroud known as the Judgeshroud. Unlike the Undershroud, it is not malicious and chaotic in nature, and its only true goal is to maintain a balance between both shrouds in this world", Jose explained.

"So, how did you happen to become the vessel for this shroud?", I asked.

"Well, here's the awkward part. When I was ripped from my own world, I didn't have any powers here. My life back in my world was almost perfect, and I became bitter and depressed when I had that life torn away from me. The agents were the only people I knew to turn to for help, since they happened to find me pretty quickly. I was too cowardly to kill myself, so I decided to go along with them as it was better than nothing. I gradually became filled with hatred for whatever was responsible for making my life turn to shit. I had no common sense, and the agents were feeding me and sheltering me, so I didn't even consider taking them on. The next best thing was whoever became the Undershroud's chosen. I was jealous of them and their power, and it happened to be you, Notarin", Jose explained.

"I can sort of see where this is going", I said.

"Yes. Well, I managed to capture you and your friend by surprise with some fellow agents, and I almost managed to kill you, until a certain man intervened. That's besides the point though. You and your friends left me to suffer on the ground, bleeding out. I honestly don't blame you for that. At that point however, I heard a voice call to me. It was that of the Judgeshroud. At that point in time, I was the one who wanted to destroy the Undershroud itself the most. My desire synchronized me with the Judgeshroud's desire to stop the Undershroud and bring balance back to the world," Jose continued.

"So, how did I end up losing my memory? You said that you were probably responsible for that", I asked.

"The power the Judgeshroud grants me allows me to combat the effects of the Undershroud. I probably synchronized with it before even realizing it, and when I hurt you, I weakened the Undershroud's influence on you. I acted as a poison for the Undershroud. The Undershroud's influence on you was strong enough to give a fight, but my poison worked eventually. That's why you've lost your memory. The Undershroud's influence was so strong, that once it was gone, you wouldn't remember a thing", Jose elaborated.

"What about you? Why aren't you in a rush to kill me now? What powers do the Judgeshroud grant you?", I asked.

"I was a fool back then. I was consumed with rage, that is until the Judgeshroud gave me a bigger picture of things. You were an unfortunate victim of the Undershroud, and it was wrong of me to target you instead of the Undershroud itself. The Judgeshroud gave me powers that could warp reality, and I could even make contact with other worlds. I begged the Judgeshroud to allow me to see my beloved Kyle again, and the Judgeshroud granted me my wish", Jose explained.

"Who's Kyle? Is that your lover? Don't worry, I'm not homophobic, so I won't make any judgements if that's the case", I inquired.

"Kyle is the name of my wonderful pet turtle. He has been my best friend ever since I got him. Kyle was always there for me, and I hated to live without him. Anyways, I have been spending my time using my powers to generate more positivity in this world. The Undershroud has grown weaker as a result, especially with you absent as the vessel. However, the Overshroud in this world has always been significantly weaker, and the balance between the two is not actually considered to be 50/50", Jose said.

"What do you mean by that?", I asked.

"It means that while the Undershroud is getting weaker and that the balance will be restored soon, I will start to losing my powers as a vessel of the Judgeshroud. The Judgeshroud will simply not be necessary anymore once the established balance has been restored. However, the cult surrounding the Undershroud will still exist, and that means that there's a good chance that the balance could be ruined again. Once balance is restored, I could lose my powers and memories like you have. I have to see that the cult gets destroyed before that happens", Jose explained.

All this information was a little much for my brain to process. Did I really forget my time as a vessel of the Undershroud while I was here? That feels like it should be impossible. Jose did seem to provide a convincing case though, and he was still my best lead on fixing Asaho's situation.

"How could you stop this cult? How many members are there? I don't think I can help despite my apparent 'magic potential'", I asked.

"That's the problem. I would need someone like you to stop them, Notarin. You might not know it yet, but we might be able to use some of that magic potential of yours. If the Judgeshroud will let me share a bit of its power with you, we might be able to take the Agents of the Undershroud on!", Jose suggested.

I paused for a brief moment and thought about what he said. I could see that he was anxiously twiddling his fingers in anticipation for a response. I couldn't keep him waiting much longer.

"I will agree to help you, but on one condition…", I said.

"What would that be?", Jose asked.

"You know I'm here for a reason, and that is to help my girlfriend Asaho. She's come down with a deadly illness and I couldn't bear living without her. She means everything to me. I will only help you if you agree to heal her with your powers", I demanded.

"Asaho… Yes! Certainly! I'm so sorry about what happened to her back when she was being held captive by the agents. I would've done something to help her if I wasn't so depressed and consumed with rage back then. I didn't even try to stop the other agents that tortured her and raped her on a daily basis", Jose responded.

"What the fuck? I don't know anything about this! I can't believe something so horrible had happened to her! I want to fucking hit you right now for not doing anything, but I know you are a changed man now, so it would be pointless", I said in shock.

"I guess she doesn't remember anything about that either. Although that is odd. I wouldn't know exactly why she would lose her memories as well. Anyways, it's definitely for the best that she doesn't remember any of that. It would be truly traumatizing", Jose said.

If something that horrible happened to her, she would surely remember it, right? Why hasn't she told me anything about it? I found this a little hard to believe, but everything was a little hard to believe right now. I might as well believe anything now, since I didn't even think it was possible for me to go to another world.

"Take me to Asaho and I'll see what I can do. I won't keep you waiting on this. I know time is of the essence for her. Let's get going now", Jose instructed.

"Isn't it dangerous for you to come out of hiding?", I asked.

"Yes, but I can't be wasting any more time in hiding now. With you around, I might have the best shot of taking down the agents that I'll get. Plus, the agents don't frequent Oxenfurt that much, so I won't be in much danger for now", Jose explained.

I nodded in response and Jose got out of his chair. I noticed that he picked up his turtle to take with him as well.

"Why are you bringing Kyle?", I asked.

"Kyle comes with me wherever I go. No exceptions. I must have him around and protect him at all costs. Sort of similar in a way to your Asaho, although you left her behind", Jose answered.

"It's almost like she's not as portable as a turtle or something", I said in response.

Jose laughed at my remark and then we finally made our way up the stairs from the hideout. When we got outside, it appeared the sun was already setting. I guess a lot of time passed while we were talking. There was no time to lose. We had to get to Asaho as soon as possible.


	20. Chapter 20

Jose followed me as I made a dash towards my apartment where Asaho was waiting for me. If I took any longer, I risked my chances of her survival.

"Notarin! Slow down a bit! We don't want to stick out like a sore thumb! The agents could find us easily this way!", Jose urged.

"I thought you said that Oxenfurt isn't visited by the agents that much! We'll be fine, right? We have to hurry or Asaho could die!", I responded.

"Although the agents don't hang around here much, I highly suspect they might search this city more thoroughly soon. You've gone missing, so their main goal is to look for you right now. We need to stop them, but we also can't let them get near us until you are more powerful! If we're not careful, we'll all be in danger!", Jose exclaimed.

As much as I was worried about Asaho, Jose was right. If we didn't look after ourselves, there was no hope for Asaho either. I slowed to a gentle stroll so attention wouldn't be drawn towards us. A few minutes later, Jose and I finally arrived at my apartment.

As we made our way inside, I could see that Asaho was still lying in bed, but luckily still breathing. I didn't take any time rushing to her side.

"Asaho! Wake up! The rumors are true! I found a man that can help you! Asaho, wake up! Please!", I yelled.

No matter what I tried, Asaho wouldn't wake up. I knew she was still alive, but she was so deep in sleep that she couldn't respond. Jose released Kyle out of his hands and approached Asaho.

"It appears that she's in a comatose state. She won't be able to wake up until I help her. This may take a few minutes, so please be patient. She will be alright now", Jose stated.

I sat and watched as Jose worked his Judgeshroud powers. I could see warm light emanate from Jose's hands as he waved them over Asaho's body. Even Kyle, who had been wandering through the apartment, had their attention drawn to this little spectacle.

"That should do it. She should wake up any minute now", Jose said as the glow from his hands dimmed.

I walked over to Asaho and shook her by the shoulder. To my relief, I could see her begin to open her eyes. With a yawn, she turned to my side and glared at me with her striking green eyes.

"Notarin? I think I feel a bit better. How long have I been out?", Asaho asked.

"Asaho! I'm so relieved! I've been gone for several hours, but I managed to get some help from this guy over here!", I said as I pointed towards Jose. Asaho turned and looked to where I was pointing and then turned to me again.

"Who's that?", Asaho asked.

"His name is Jose. He's the guy in the rumors you were talking about. Turns out they weren't just rumors after all. He has powers that allow him to help out the weak. You were in a comatose state before, and now that he worked his magic, you're awake and feeling better again!", I explained.

Asaho looked a bit shocked, but definitely happy. It didn't take long until the surprised look on her face morphed into a warm smile. She turned to look at Jose, who was sitting across from me.

"Thank you for helping me! I didn't think the rumors were true!", Asaho said to Jose.

"It is my duty to help those in need. Although, I need to borrow Notarin for a while. I need his help with an urgent matter currently", Jose responded. Asaho tilted her head and squinted her eyes in confusion.

"What would you need Notarin for? Don't tell me he'sghe's involved in something dangerous! Tell me what this is about! You're not taking him away unless I go with him as well!", Asaho shouted with concern. Jose let out a sigh and began to explain everything about the Agents of the Undershroud, excluding the traumatizing details of Asaho's past with them.

"Somehow, I always knew Notarin was special. That said, I'm still going with you two, even if it puts me in danger", Asaho said in response to Jose's explanation of the situation.

"Asaho, I really don't want to see you in danger, but I also want to have you by my side and know for sure you're ok as well. I guess it can't be helped", I said. Jose formed a frown on his face as he turned to look at me.

"Notarin, as much as I hate to say it, she will only make things more challenging for us. We must leave her behind, if only for her safety", Jose said in response. I could see Asaho begin to form tears at the thought of being left alone.

"Sorry Jose, she's coming with us. We don't really have any reason for living besides each other. While I do owe you, we're not going to be living apart. What about your turtle? Isn't he a liability? Why must your turtle come with you? Surely you could have your assistant, or someone else take care of him", I rebutted. A visible look of anger formed on Jose's face.

"How dare you suggest that I leave Kyle behind in the 'care' of someone else! That turtle means more than you could ever imagine! Well, there's no point in arguing anymore. We're just wasting precious time. Do as you please and take her with us. However, don't complain to me if you end up regretting it", Jose said in response.

Asaho and I packed our things to get ready to set out on our journey with Jose. Jose tapped his foot impatiently, anxious to get out of this place. We were about to leave until we heard footsteps approaching the door.

"Quiet! We don't know who that could be", Jose insisted.

We tried to hide as quick as possible, but we soon found out that we acted too late. A big, burly man barged in through the door and was staring us down.

"Are you trying to hide from me? You should know that is ultimately pointless. I was going to find you no matter what", the big man said.

Jose bravely took several steps towards the man, seemingly confronting him.

"How the hell did you find this location? Did you follow us?", Jose asked.

"That girl…", the man mumbled as he pointed towards Asaho.

I could feel rage boil up inside me towards this man. I wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face, but I knew I didn't have the strength.

"What the hell do you want with her? I'll not let you lay a finger on her!", I shouted.

"You really think you can stop me? We know you've grown weaker, because all of us who serve the Undershroud have grown weaker! However, just because the Undershroud has grown extremely weak inside you, it still shares whatever power it has left with us. We will not be defeated, and you have nothing to defeat us with", the man explained.

At that moment, I could hear a voice in my head. It appeared to be Jose's. Could it be that he was using his powers to telepathically communicate with me?

"Notarin! Don't give away the fact that I'm communicating with you telepathically or we're all screwed! I'm going to share a bit of the Judgeshroud's power with you. If we can both take him on, we might have a chance!", Jose explained.

I was somewhat confused. I didn't have any battle experience that I remembered, so how was I going to help Jose, even if I had the power? However, Jose was right. This was our best chance to get out of this situation. I could feel a surge of energy entering me, as if power was growing inside me.

"Notarin, I know you're afraid of being too inexperienced in this situation, but trust me. I've buffed your physical strength. It should be able to at least match his now. I'll tell you when to attack, ok? I'll distract him and you can take him from behind! Just trust your instincts!", Jose instructed.

The man was taunting me by standing in front of me with a devilish grin and laughing with confidence. Jose suddenly drop kicked the man in the face and he stumbled away.

"Fuck you! You really think you can take me on, kid? That didn't hurt a bit. You're gonna need to hit a lot harder if you hope to do anything!", the man shouted.

The man quickly grabbed Jose by the collar and tossed him against the wall, damaging it in the process. Jose looked hurt, but he was able to get back on his feet again. I could hear his voice entering my head again.

"Notarin! I've got his attention. When he gets near me again, rush him and just attack! Push him down!", Jose instructed.

The man stomped as he made his way over to Jose. I could see Asaho watching in terror, clueless as how to help. I could see the man raise his fist, and then that's when I made my move. I dashed toward his back pounced him. The man stumbled forward and collapsed to the ground. I didn't expect to have this much strength in me.

"What… the fuck? How did you…", the man muttered.

"Notarin! Keep him pinned down and give him a beating! If you don't, we…", Jose began to instruct.

As Jose instructed what to do next, I lost my focus and the man rose up from the ground again, making me stumble on my back.

"Haha, you really think your little trick would actually work? You had me fooled for a second, but you're too much of a wimp without your Undershroud powers to actually do anything properly in battle", the man said.

I rose back up to my feet and backed away as far as I could from the man. I was rushing to think of what to do next, but my thoughts were all muddled. At that moment I could hear Jose's voice yet again.

"You screwed up, but we can still win this! I'm going to share a bit more power with you, but it's the rest I've got for the time being, so I'll be out of the fight now. You have more magic potential then me, so you can put it to better use, believe it or not!", Jose explained.

I could feel more power surging through me in that moment. I felt more confident in my abilities now, and I could now calmly observe the man's aggressive movements as he approached me. It was as if time had slowed down, allowing me to react easily to whatever he had in store for me.

I could see his fist swing towards my head. This normally would've been able to take me out in one hit, but I was able to duck under it with ease. I readied my own fist to counter his attack, and I swung at his face in return. The blow from my fist was so strong that, the man stumbled backwards and fell to the ground.

I wouldn't make the same mistake again. I rushed over to the man and began to repeatedly punch him in the face. I could hear him yelling in pain and I was beginning to feel uncomfortable about what I was doing.

"Stop! I beg you! You're going to… break my neck… or turn my head into mush! Please let me live!", the man begged.

"Don't listen to him, Notarin! I know this pig, and he deserves to fucking die!", Jose requested.

What Jose said was probably correct, but I didn't feel right about killing someone. I knew that I had done enough to make sure that this man wasn't going to get up anytime soon, so I did as he requested, but made sure to keep him pinned down.

"How did you know we were here?", I asked the man.

"The girl… she's the reason", the man said.

"What? Explain yourself! What does my beloved Asaho have to do with any of this?", I inquired.

"We implanted her with a virus from another world. It's known as 'COCKVID-69'. The symptoms usually appear within days and kill even quicker, but your Undershroud powers were keeping her alive. It emits a signal that can easily be picked up on and tracked, so that's how we found you", the man explained.

"So, you were using her as a tracker? Why were you keeping her imprisoned then?", I asked.

"The boss expected you to find her eventually. The virus was used as a failsafe in the event we couldn't find you and the Undershroud happened to be weakened. Her death was supposed to reawaken the Undershroud within you", the man continued.

Jose walked over with a look of frustration on his face. He appeared to be holding a sharp knife in his hands.

"That's enough questions for him, Notarin. It's about time this asshole was put to rest", Jose said.

"I recognize you, actually… You're the bastard who defied us and abandoned us! You have nothing in this world! You are weak! Why did you leave us? You were always pathetic!", the man yelled at Jose.

"And you're one of the bastards who tortured and raped this poor girl over here as I was powerless to do anything! I'm going to do what I should've done a long time ago. I know I shouldn't kill, but I can't let people as terrible as you walk the streets freely! I feel shame for not having done anything before, but now I finally have the opportunity to serve some kind of justice!", Jose said in response.

Jose leaned over the man's head and brought his knife closer and closer to the man's eye. Jose was consumed with rage as he thrust down his knife into the man's eye socket. I could hear intense screams of pain as Jose dug into the man's eye with his knife.

Eventually, the screaming stopped.

All that was left of the man now was a lifeless body. Jose was breathing heavily in shock at what he had just done out of pure anger. He backed away from the gruesome corpse in front of him, and both Asaho and I stared at Jose with a dumbfounded gaze.

"What? What are you looking at? He deserved it, right?", Jose asked in response to our gazes.

Asaho clearly looked more traumatized than both of us.

"Is it true? The thing you mentioned about… torture and… rape? I don't remember any of it… and I don't want to!", Asaho said as she began to form tears.

"I'm… afraid so", Jose responded.

Jose and I sat in awkward silence as Asaho continued crying. It was hard to soften the mood of the room. Jose attempted to look more composed and finally opened his mouth.

"We have no time to contemplate. We need to get moving now, or we're dead".


	21. Chapter 21

We all had managed to escape Oxenfurt with ease. We got as far as we could get away until we had to stop due to exhaustion. Jose managed to spot a small, cozy looking cave for us to camp out at.

"Notarin, I'm going to go grab some firewood. Want to come and help me?", Jose asked.

"Sorry, I don't want to leave Asaho alone. Who knows what could be out here in the wild!", I responded.

Jose looked at me with a frown for half a second before realizing that anything he said would be futile. He turned his back towards me and proceeded to head off to pick out some firewood. Asaho turned towards me and met my eyes with concern.

"Notarin-kun, I think I would be ok. You should be more worried about Jose. This cave is nicely concealed. The country outside is not. Who knows what could attack him!", Asaho explained.

I paused to think, staring deeply into her emerald green eyes.

"Asaho, every time I look at you, you seem so fragile. I'm worried that if I leave you alone, you'll break. I know I shouldn't be this clingy, but I just can't help it. Besides, Jose can handle himself. He's the most powerful out of all of us. I don't know what I'd do if I'd lose you", I told her.

Asaho blushed furiously, stuttering her speech while thinking of a response.

"Ahh… You shouldn't be this clingy! This is an order from your girlfriend! Go now and help Jose-kun. It simply isn't true that he's the strongest out of all of us!", Asaho requested.

I was confused. If Jose was the vessel of the Judgeshroud, why would he not be the most powerful out of all of us? I know that he could amplify my abilities, but that's about it.

"Even if I did have powers, I don't have them now! I'm just a burden to him currently!", I replied.

A look of frustration began to form on Asaho's face.

"Notarin-Kun! Listen to me! There's a reason why he used his powers to amplify your abilities back there! You have more magic potential than him. You're the most likely to get us out of a sticky situation. Even if it's only for my sake, please go look for Jose-kun now!", Asaho demanded.

I was worried for her well-being, but I couldn't find any way to provide a counter argument. If Jose died, then Asaho and I probably wouldn't stand a chance. I simply nodded in agreement with Asaho and made my way outside the cave.

The late evening hours meant that sunlight wouldn't last too much longer. I remained within a close radius to the cave while searching for Jose so I wouldn't get lost, but I could find no sign of him. Did he really have to go far to find firewood? What I thought was going to be a simple task was starting to concern me more and more.

I didn't want to stray far from Asaho, but I was going to have to venture out into the woods. I pulled twigs off of some branches to mark a path so I wouldn't get lost. My search wasn't yielding any results until I heard noises that sounded like that of a beast.

I vaguely remember reading something about monsters in some schoolbooks while I was attending at Oxenfurt Academy. I had hoped that I'd never run into one of these beasts, but tonight could be the night that my luck ran out. Unfortunately, that sound was my only lead, and I would have to follow it.

The louder the noises got, the clearer it became that they were not emitted by anything resembling human. In the distance I could see an inhuman figure, almost like a bat, running after something or someone. It wasn't long until I could see what it was chasing after.

I could see Jose running away in desperation, his clothes torn, covered in dirt and blood. I knew that creature would not spare me if I got in its way, but I couldn't just leave Jose behind. He was clearly struggling. I made a dash in his general direction until his eyes met mine.

"Notarin! What are you doing here? No matter! I shouldn't complain! I'll need your help!", Jose shouted as he continued running from the bat-shaped beast.

I kept up with Jose's pace as the beast was now viciously charging towards both of us. Jose's panting had become clearly audible and because of this it was apparent that he wasn't going to be able to keep this up for much longer.

"What am I supposed to do, Jose? You have more powers than me! How are we going to get out of this?", I asked as I made sure not to slow down.

"I'm sorry Notarin. I'm going to have to lend you my powers, as you can make better use of them than me", Jose responded.

Jose placed his left hand on my shoulder as we continued running. I could feel a foreign energy enter my body, almost like that time back at the apartment. As the transfer of energy completed, I could feel Jose's body slump from my shoulder. I turned and saw that he had fallen flat on his face, with the bat-shaped creature showing no signs of stopping.

I had to think of a way to end this creature's life fast, but there were no weapons in sight to aid me in my battle. I couldn't just kill this thing with my own two hands even with my heightened strength, could I? The beast's skin looked a bit too tough to tear into. Anyhow, I had to think fast or Jose would be torn to shreds.

That's when it hit me. If I didn't have any weapons, I guess I'd have to make do with the next best thing. Maybe my heightened strength could allow me to pull one of the smaller trees out of the ground and use that as a weapon.

I dashed towards a short but sturdy tree that was a several feet away from me. I grabbed onto the tree as hard as I could and began pulling. The bat beast was hurling towards Jose at a breakneck speed. I could feel the trees roots were beginning to loosen as I pulled harder and harder, but things were looking even more grim for Jose.

The tree finally made its way into my hands and was ready to be used as a weapon. When I looked, in the direction of Jose, my heart stopped. It seemed as if I was too late. The bat creature appeared to be sucking Jose's blood. No matter what, I had to stop this thing, even if it was too late for Jose.

I charged towards the creature yelling at the top of my lungs, using the tree as a battering ram. My force seemed to approximate that of a large truck speeding towards an unsuspecting pedestrian. Before the creature could react, I could see it flying back from the impact of the tree. The creature smashed against a few trees, knocking them down in the process. It looked like a blow that strong should've killed it, but I needed to go over and make sure it didn't get back up again. My hopes turned out to be false, unfortunately.

The bat creature hissed at me as it got back on its feet once more. I could see pure rage burn inside its eyes as it started charging towards me faster than I expected. Fortunately, the strength I had acquired from Jose allowed me to react with enough speed. I swung the trunk of the tree like a baseball bat, hitting the creature right in the face.

I could still hear it making eerie screeching noises. My job was not yet done. I continued to slam the tree trunk down on the bat creature until I knew it went completely silent. I could only imagine how disfigured the creature must look by now, so I decided to just drop the tree trunk on the creature so I wouldn't have to see its nasty corpse.

I dashed over to Jose in the hopes that he was still alive. He hadn't yet gotten up from the ground, leaving me worried about what condition he was in. Thankfully, it soon became apparent to me that Jose was still breathing.

"Goddamn Fleder… it managed to make a dent in me…", Jose said in a weak voice.

"Fleder, is that what that creature was?", I asked.

"Yes, Fleders are a type of lesser vampire. That thing just got a bit of my blood…", Jose explained.

"Vampires? Don't tell me…", I began to speak until Jose interrupted me.

"Don't worry Notarin. Vampires in this world are nothing like the tales you hear back in our worlds. Vampires here are born, not made. You don't have to worry about me becoming some bloodsucking monstrosity tomorrow morning just because I lost some blood to one lesser vampire. There is something about this that is concerning though…", Jose clarified.

"What do you mean, 'concerning'? What's wrong?", I asked.

"What's wrong is that I struggled with fighting a lesser vampire, Notarin. A month or two ago something like this wouldn't be anywhere near a challenge for me. The Judgeshroud itself is growing weaker and weaker because the natural balance of this world has almost been restored. This is why I needed your help. Only you can make the most of the remaining Judgeshroud power, Notarin. What we fought was only a lesser vampire and not even an agent of the Undershroud. This has reminded me that our mission is very time sensitive, and if we don't track down the leader of this cult soon, we'll be done for", Jose explained.

"I'm nothing but an average Japanese high school student though. I know I have some sort of magic potential that you mentioned before, but I have no experience! How can someone like me hope to defeat the Agents of the Undershroud? Even with my enhanced strength, pulling that tree out of the ground proved to be a real challenge! Why aren't we just focusing on a way to get out of this world? It's clearly gone to shit! There's no hope for it!", I responded.

"Notarin, please…", Jose said as he failed to get my attention.

"The only reason I even try in this world is because of Asaho! Without her this world means nothing to me! Nothing! Why should I care what happens to it? I just want to go back home and see my friends once more! I'm sick and tired of a life where misery fills the streets and survival isn't guaranteed! Back where I was from, life wasn't shit! I could go on a normal date with Asaho-chan in a nice café, free of any death or suffering surrounding us!", I shouted in a sudden rage.

"How do you know that you weren't surrounded by death and suffering back in your world? Do you think the lives of the people living here are worth less than the ones of those living in yours? See, our modern world does a much more efficient job at covering up the undesirable parts of society. It is undeniable that living conditions in our home worlds are certainly safer and more comfortable than the ones of this era, but that does not mean suffering does not occur. In fact, we like to hide the suffering away, because we've all become pathetic cowards. There's still people in this era that value and enjoy their life, despite the hardships", Jose responded.

"What are you going on about?", I asked.

"I used to be in a similar position as you, Notarin. You know this. When you live comfortably, you tend to forget about those suffering. This is unfortunately just natural. It's only when someone experiences suffering of their own that they wake up to the fact that the world is meaner than they once thought. It's an inherently disgusting part of humanity, but I think everyone is capable of confronting it. You're acting incredibly selfish and giving into nihilistic thought", Jose explained.

"I'm sorry, I just got worked up", I said.

"Don't say you're sorry, just act. If you are truly sorry, then we must continue on our journey to destroy this evil while we still have the chance. Are you still in?", Jose asked.

"Yes. We should really be getting back to Asaho right now though. We can talk more later. She's probably worried sick. Let's grab some wood and get back as soon as possible!", I instructed.

Jose nodded in response.

"Oh, and Notarin? One more thing…", Jose said before he paused in an uncomfortable silence.

"Yes?", I asked, hoping to get things moving faster.

"If… If anything happens to me… Please promise that you will take care of Kyle".


End file.
